Week 12: Audit Your Online Presence

Facebook hasn’t been my favorite company in recent months (to put it nicely). Reading The Atlantic’s article about how few people know how Facebook is using their data is concerning. The public should always be informed about things as important as this. I am appalled at the fact that Facebook essentially sells my data to advertisers and other companies looking to harass me with internet ads. The amount of times that I have had the thought of a product come into my head only to see that same product pop up in my Instagram feed seconds later is absurd. It makes me feel like I’m being watched 24/7. Thankfully, my online footprint isn’t too big. I have all of the main stream social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat) but they’re all protected from people who I don’t want to “follow” me. One thing that I might consider changing are my bios/public information on all of my accounts. They give certain bits of information such as what town I’m from, where I go to school, etc. Personally, I thought it was ok to have that open for anyone to see. But, in light of all of these data privacy scandals, I need to rethink what I want people to see of me.

When social media first came out (I believe I was 12 or 13 when Instagram and Snapchat became popular) I thought it was the coolest thing ever. I was able to see what my friends were up to and I could share what I was doing with them. As I got older, I started to see the negative effects of it. It can leave people feeling left out, stressed about how many likes or followers they have, and unhappy with themselves. Social media has almost created this fake image of what a perfect life should look like. It fails to capture what life truly is. It’s about the ups and downs, the changes, the victories, the failures, and everything in between. Platforms like Instagram and Snapchat create a false sense of reality that has caused more problems than it’s solved.

One thing that I have started to do is take time out of my day to put my phone down and enjoy the world around me. I found myself happier than ever this past Summer when I put my phone down for a couple hours to spend quality time with friends and family.