Online Privacy Policy Laws: California Helps Teens Clean Up their Digital Act on Social Media
Applying to college, a job or looking to clear up your online reputation? Well if you are a California teen and an avid social media user, have no fear, the online "eraser button" is here.
On Monday, Gov. Jerry Brown set a precedent by signing off on a new law that would require websites to allow people younger than 18 to remove their own postings. This could be a blessing for kids growing up in an incredibly fast-paced, social media driven environment, who may not have realized the ramifications of posting unflattering pictures of themselves or negative comments that could be defamatory later in life.
A study by the American Academy of Pediatrics showed the use of social media by minors has "increased dramatically" in the past five years.
"According to a recent poll, 22 percent of teenagers log on to their favorite social media site more than 10 times a day, and more than half of adolescents log on to a social media site more than once a day," the AAP showed. "Seventy-five percent of teenagers now own cell phones, and 25 percent use them for social media, 54 percent use them for texting, and 24 percent use them for instant messaging. Thus, a large part of this generation's social and emotional development is occurring while on the Internet and on cell phones."
With the increase of aggressive and negative comments on social media platforms, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Vine have jumped on the "eraser" bandwagon by allowing users to erase previous posts and comments and for some to report abuse. It's important to note that this isn't the case for all websites, however.
The implementation of this online "eraser button" also affects the large Latino population in California who make up a large percentage in the social media landscape.
A Nielsen study conducted last year highlights the increase of Latino, social media users. "Social is another platform where Latinos are especially active and rising in numbers. During February 2012, Hispanics increased their visits to Social Networks/Blogs by 14 percent compared to February 2011. Not only are Latinos the fastest growing U.S. ethnic group on Facebook and WordPress.com from a year ago, but also Hispanic adults are 25 percent more likely to follow a brand and 18 percent more likely to follow a celebrity than the general online population."