Keep Your Kids Safe
In the dark, the hidden dangers of cellphone camera's
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Most cellular phones, even the most standard and basic handsets have cameras. The quality and capabilities of the camera may vary, but the end result is exactly the same: a digitally recorded photo or video.
Photos and videos captured via cell phone keep memories alive, and can be shared with family and friends the world over, simply by hitting “send” – but what about the darker side of photo/image/video sharing via cell phones?
When buying a cell phone for a minor, it is important to find out what capabilities and ‘image sharing’ options the camera has. It is important to remember that there are many other ways of sharing images via cell phones, than just via MMS. Parents often think that their children won’t be able to share any photos/videos, as they don’t have ‘funds’ for the rather pricey MMS costs – BUT, e parents fail to realise that there are many free applications available on many cell phones that allow users to share and send images ‘free of charge’. Read the owner’s manual carefully, and test the phone yourself – find out what image/video sharing applications there are on the phone, and based on that, place restrictions where necessary.
Educate your child as to the dangers of sending images to people they do NOT know in the real world. Children should never send images to any people they meet in chatrooms or on chat sites. The reality is: these so called “online friends” might not be who they proclaim to be. Children should also be careful when sending images to school friends, and when uploading images onto Social networking sites. Once the image has been uploaded (onto a social network profile e.g. Face book) or sent to another device (cell phone), it is “out there” in the cyber world and other persons can use this image for their own purposes.
E.g.:
Stealing an image of another person and pretending to be that person in chat rooms
Using an image (photo or video) in a way that makes the person in the image look ‘bad’
Altering the image in a less than flattering way, and then forwarding the image to others
Using the image in order to ‘online bully’ or ‘blackmail’ the person in the image
Children must therefore be educated as to what the dangers are BEFORE they send images captured with their cell phones to others.
Parents also need to be aware, that teenagers in particular HAVE been encountered on chat sites and in chat rooms, ‘selling’ images from their cell phones for airtime pin vouchers. Cell phone ‘airtime’ has become valuable currency, and children/teenagers must be warned NOT to fall for offers of airtime in exchange for photos.
Added to the above, parents and children must be alert to the very real risks involved with ‘sharing’ an image taken using: iPhones, Android smart phones, Blackberry phones and the like. “Geotagging” is the term used when devices (I Phones, smart phones, android phones) store information on your exact location at the time the photo is taken. Your GPS co-ordinates are stored within an image or movie file, unbeknown to you. When this image/video is uploaded to a social networking site e.g. Twitter, the “geo-tags” which are invisible to the naked eye are uploaded along with the image/video. There are ‘browser plug-ins’ and “software programs’ available which would reveal this “geo-tagging” location information to any person who wishes to see it. This has happened to a few celebrities, who have posed for and then uploaded photos on social networking sites.
In order to disable geo-tagging on phones, and to protect yourself and loved ones from giving out geographical information when uploading and forwarding images/movies, do the following:
Photos and videos captured via cell phone keep memories alive, and can be shared with family and friends the world over, simply by hitting “send” – but what about the darker side of photo/image/video sharing via cell phones?
When buying a cell phone for a minor, it is important to find out what capabilities and ‘image sharing’ options the camera has. It is important to remember that there are many other ways of sharing images via cell phones, than just via MMS. Parents often think that their children won’t be able to share any photos/videos, as they don’t have ‘funds’ for the rather pricey MMS costs – BUT, e parents fail to realise that there are many free applications available on many cell phones that allow users to share and send images ‘free of charge’. Read the owner’s manual carefully, and test the phone yourself – find out what image/video sharing applications there are on the phone, and based on that, place restrictions where necessary.
Educate your child as to the dangers of sending images to people they do NOT know in the real world. Children should never send images to any people they meet in chatrooms or on chat sites. The reality is: these so called “online friends” might not be who they proclaim to be. Children should also be careful when sending images to school friends, and when uploading images onto Social networking sites. Once the image has been uploaded (onto a social network profile e.g. Face book) or sent to another device (cell phone), it is “out there” in the cyber world and other persons can use this image for their own purposes.
E.g.:
Stealing an image of another person and pretending to be that person in chat rooms
Using an image (photo or video) in a way that makes the person in the image look ‘bad’
Altering the image in a less than flattering way, and then forwarding the image to others
Using the image in order to ‘online bully’ or ‘blackmail’ the person in the image
Children must therefore be educated as to what the dangers are BEFORE they send images captured with their cell phones to others.
Parents also need to be aware, that teenagers in particular HAVE been encountered on chat sites and in chat rooms, ‘selling’ images from their cell phones for airtime pin vouchers. Cell phone ‘airtime’ has become valuable currency, and children/teenagers must be warned NOT to fall for offers of airtime in exchange for photos.
Added to the above, parents and children must be alert to the very real risks involved with ‘sharing’ an image taken using: iPhones, Android smart phones, Blackberry phones and the like. “Geotagging” is the term used when devices (I Phones, smart phones, android phones) store information on your exact location at the time the photo is taken. Your GPS co-ordinates are stored within an image or movie file, unbeknown to you. When this image/video is uploaded to a social networking site e.g. Twitter, the “geo-tags” which are invisible to the naked eye are uploaded along with the image/video. There are ‘browser plug-ins’ and “software programs’ available which would reveal this “geo-tagging” location information to any person who wishes to see it. This has happened to a few celebrities, who have posed for and then uploaded photos on social networking sites.
In order to disable geo-tagging on phones, and to protect yourself and loved ones from giving out geographical information when uploading and forwarding images/movies, do the following:
- Apple iPhones: Settings, General, Location Services. You can disable the GPS entirely, or you can decide which applications can access your GPS co-ordinates.
- Blackberry: Camera Icon, Menu, Options. Disable the geo-tagging and save your settings.
- Android: Camera applications, Store location, OFF.
- Face Book: Face book automatically removes “geo-tags” from any photos you upload. Other social networking sites DO NOT – so please visit your privacy settings, and turn the ‘location sharing’ option OFF.
- Digital cameras and cell phones: Turn off ALL location sharing settings.