Protect your privacy in the network: how to teach children what is public and private
Nowadays everything is in view of everyone. The modern human being has a slight obsession with visibility: he publishes what he eats, what he thinks, what he sees ... Apparently nothing remains hidden from the eyes of others when we talk about protecting your privacy in the network. These behaviors make it very difficult teach children what is public and private, for if everything that is inside is communicated to EVERYONE, then there is simply nothing left to protect.
We know that our children are digital natives, and that their way of socializing and their language is determined by new technologies and networks, however, that does not change the essence of the person. An important part of that essence is that inner world formed by thoughts, desires, emotions or feelings that we keep for ourselves, and that we only show to those who can truly value it.
When privacy is published, it is destroyed. If something is known to everyone, it is no longer part of our privacy, but it happens to be in the public sphere; This is what is happening to the modern human being: it has been emptied of privacy because he does not reserve anything for himself. He feels the need to tell everything and, doing so, his inner world is empty of content: nothing is his, now everything belongs to everyone.
How to teach children what is public and private
One of the problems that our young people and adolescents face today is that they are very vulnerable to the opinions of others. The expansion of social networks has made harassment a very complicated issue, and this is partly due to how exposed our children are in the 2.0 world.
One of the most important reasons why you have to teach them to protect their privacy and teach them what is public and what is private, is to minimize this over-exposure and to be less vulnerable to attacks, ridicule and criticism of opinions, photos or ideas that were previously concentrated in a circle of friends and family and that are currently much more public.
We must help them understand that as long as they trust networks more and reveal their inner world to people who are not part of their circle of friends or loved ones, they are more vulnerable to attacks, misinterpretations or even the propagation of their image among themselves. other groups of strangers.
The protection of privacy: it's not just a matter of security
When we talk about privacy and social networks, many readings and recommendations concentrate only on the aspect of personal security. It is vital to take this aspect into account, since it is necessary to protect one's identity and protect oneself against unscrupulous people who can take advantage of our personal data. However, little is said about the protection of privacy from the point of view of prudence, modesty or modesty.
The protection of personal privacy You can not just stay in the facet of personal security, it is also important that our children understand that they own what they say and what they keep silent about. Only by knowing these consequences can they develop the prudence that will allow them to recognize that not everything that is thought is said, just as not everything that is felt is published.
Modesty and modesty are essential virtues for the protection of privacy through the image in social networks, as they are virtues that invite us to protect and hide what is intimate before the eyes of others. It is vital that they recognize that their body is part of their privacy, and that social networks are not the place to be shown to others. Our way of dressing, our poses and movements in photos and videos, and even our conversations are a manifestation of who we are and how we want to be seen.
Accompaniment in the digital world
We might come to think that our children know more about social networks and technology than we do, and that for this reason these are issues in which we have nothing to teach: nothing is further from reality. Although young people today are more trained in the technical part of the digital world, we we have the duty to accompany and guide them in the personal aspect.
It is vital to know and understand what networks they use, with whom they communicate and what they publish; Only in this way can we accompany them and guide them in a good use of the networks and in the protection of your privacy. Recall that, although they are experts in technology, parents are still there to educate them and make them the best people they can be ... in all areas.
María Verónica Degwitz. Master of Science in Family Sciences and author of the blog In the living room of my house.
