The good and the bad in the world always tends to go hand in hand, doesn’t it? Social media is no exception. The potential risk that comes with Social Media exposure is increasing on a daily basis. Whatever you put online stays there forever. We share personal information and data almost every day without realizing the future implications of our actions.
My friend almost lost his job, thanks to Social media and a prank that cost him more than he would have imagined. He called in sick one day and his boss approved his leave without asking too much. A couple of friends went to meet him and as a joke one of them used his mobile and checked him in one of the popular casinos in the area. The poor guy didn’t have any clue of this until he returned to office after a two day gap. His boss immediately summoned him to his office and what happened next was disastrous. To begin with my friend had no clue what his boss was saying until he checked his Facebook wall himself.
There was no way he could prove his innocence then and there. He kept arguing and making a case but his boss was simply in no mood to listen. It turned out one of his colleagues, who also had a grudge on him, had checked Facebook at the same time and had apparently spread the news in the entire office including his boss. In the world of Social Media, it is very difficult to draw a line. Who would you blame? The guy who had posted the entire thing on Facebook as a mere joke or the guy who saw it and informed everyone in the office or maybe his Boss who believed in Social Media rather than trusting his own employee. After countless apologies and a doctor’s certificate, the whole issue was swept under the carpet, but the damage was done.
In my friend’s case, it could have actually sabotaged his entire career. More than a billion people are logged into Facebook or Instagram at any given point of time. The penetration of smart phone has more than doubled in the last couple of years. From politicians to students, everyone is on Social Media. Today, online penetration is so huge, that it has the power to mobilize the youth of a country and alter the destiny of the nation. As compared to 2005, more than 60% of adults use Social Networking sites as of 2015. The percentage of men and women using social media is almost same. The usage of social media transcends all age groups. Efforts will be made to restrict the data that is shared every now and then, but I think it won’t have much of an impact on the society. The usage is going to spread and with it the nightmares could keep on getting worse. My friend learnt it the hard way and I am sure there are millions around the world who will keep on learning every day.
Read the original article on: http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/10/08/social-networking-usage-2005-2015/
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