Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok are playing increasingly important roles in the everyday lives of more and more children and young people. 85 percent of 12 to 17-year-olds in Germany spent almost three hours a day on social media in 2018. And the trend is still rising. The reasons for this are obvious to many: you can chat with friends at any time, keep up to date with what they are doing thanks to their posts, and you can be active yourself – through likes, comments, or your own posts, which others then respond to. Creating your own posts is even said to encourage creativity in young people and help them find their identity. So, are the ongoing warnings about the risks of social media justified? A look at current studies and data surveys shows that it is clearly yes! When you are online, you need to protect your own data, such as your details for the 22Bet login.
Risks For Young People On The World Wide Web
Experts believe that almost half of all children and young people have had a bad experience online, often specifically on social networks. A study from 2021 states that 41 percent of online users have been harassed, with 75 percent of these cases taking place on social media channels.
Cyberbullying and hate speech are considered to be the biggest problems, especially for younger users. But there are also a number of other risks: the secret collection of data by Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok, fake news, fake profiles, dangerous challenges, infecting smartphones or computers with viruses, fraud, addictive behavior, or a distorted self-perception. Here is an overview of the dangers of social media and some tips on how to deal with them.
Unfortunately, this is not an isolated case: pictures and videos end up on the internet against the will of the people depicted.
Online Harassment: Cyber Bullying
‘Social networks have given bullying a new public quality. The fact that children and young people tease, annoy, and ostracise each other is not a new phenomenon. However, what used to happen in playgrounds, youth centers, or segregated spaces is now accessible to a large audience or, in the worst case, the entire internet. As a result, one in three young people has been a victim themselves. The forms in which these attacks occur are varied.
For example, people are excluded from groups of friends or exposed to online postings.
According to the BSI, identity theft is also a major problem in this context: bullies use fake or, in the worst case, hacked social media profiles to post defamatory content.
How To Defend Yourself Against Cyberbullying
Cyberbullying can have far-reaching consequences for those affected – here’s how you can defend yourself:
- Document the incident, take screenshots of the posts and content, save chats and messages, and note down information about the perpetrators. Most networks also allow you to block unwanted people.
- Contact the operator of the platform. Include all documented information.
- Seek a direct dialogue with the bullies if you know them.
- In the case of children and young people, their parents should also be informed.
- Know your rights! Nobody is allowed to post photos or videos of you on the internet without your permission. In the event of threats, massive insults, and violations of personal rights: Press charges.
- Get help from friends, authority figures, and the police.
Fake News: What Is True?
The internet is teeming with information – but some of it is fake news. Social media, in particular, plays a key role in the increasing spread of fake or manipulated news. A study cites the platforms WhatsApp, Facebook, and YouTube as ‘drivers of disinformation’; despite comparatively low usage figures, the messenger service Telegram is also categorized as ‘very relevant’ for the dissemination of fake news.
After analyzing numerous specialist articles, another recent study concludes that social media, messengers, and other online services can damage trust in both politics and traditional media. According to the study, social media users tend to no longer seek balanced and active information. Instead, they rely on the news feeds of their platforms. However, these work with algorithms that collect data about our usage behavior and then show us news that matches the content. This creates the often-discussed filter bubbles: Users only reach information and, therefore, also fake news that fits their own worldview and reinforces it. It is striking that older people are considered more susceptible to fake news.
