Why I Don't Use Facebook Much: Privacy Concerns and Online Bullying

I have actually never used Facebook beyond casually visiting people as an outside guest and I'm proud 1995-Present that I never used it myself.

Early Internet Safety and Facebook's Origin

I was there when the internet became available in the mid-90s. One of the first things they taught us kids was to protect our privacy at all costs because there's no telling what some nefarious person would do with such information. We were warned not to share:

Our real names Our real home addresses Our real phone numbers Actual pictures of ourselves

Facebook came online the same year I graduated high school. When I first heard of it, I had no idea what it was, just like we all were thinking when we first heard of "the internet" or "AOL." The most social media anyone had used for 10 years was just emails and online message boards. In some ways, I wish it had stayed that way.

Privacy Concerns and Online Safety Practices

As Facebook exploded with popularity, some red flags arose in my mind. It wasn't enough of an incentive to join, however, when people started posting their personal information, including pictures of themselves. This was the complete opposite of what I had been taught in protecting one's identity and privacy online! My brother, of course, jumped on the bandwagon and was not pleased at hearing my concerns about the social network. He just glared at me and told me "They protect your privacy and you can make your account private or public." I didn't believe what he said for a moment, and my fears were well-founded over the next 15 years.

Online Bullying and its Dangers

Less than two years had passed since Facebook came online before we started hearing about online bullying exploding, and high school kids committing suicide all aided by Facebook. So what do online bullying, suicide, and Facebook have to do with each other? A lot. Many public schools jumped on the Facebook bandwagon and demanded that all students have a school account so they could get online notifications from their teachers. This setup led to it being extremely easy for bullies at the schools, particularly girls, to pick on their favorite intended victims, take compromising pictures of them, which became easier with cell phones with cameras, and post horrible, humiliating stuff about their targets online. It was easy to circulate around to everyone at school.

Before we go on, I should tell you that bullying of any kind is a nightmare, particularly if you feel powerless and there's little you or the adults in charge can do about it. When I was going to junior high and high school in the 90s and early 2000s, the girl version of bullying was bad enough. Girls bully by spreading vicious gossip around the school and take advantage of being popular or having friends to spread the lies. But because of the tech at the time, those lies and gossip remained within the confines of the school. People outside knew nothing about it.

That isn't true anymore. Adding social media to the mix made it so people who weren't even going to the schools these bullying victims were attending could join in on the torture. You had adults in their 30s and 40s, kids in foreign schools with perverts, and even online predators joining in on the "fun."

It got so bad that several students ended up hanging themselves in their closets because they couldn't take the emotional torture anymore. The worst part was their parents were totally clueless about this. I mean, you had parents who had grown up pre-internet and knew nothing about how kids communicate online in the mid-2000s who were often wrapped up in their own adult lives of working and providing for their families. That and kids aren't really inclined to talk about school life with their parents. A lot of kids are led to believe in the myth that their parents are too old to understand what's going on, or they wouldn't be of any help. It makes me wonder just how proud the parents of those bullies are knowing their kids were responsible for the deaths of kids whose only crime was not being popular. Those parents were just as clueless, by the way.

Facebook's Privacy and Political Issues

In the 2010s, I heard some fascinating stories about how Facebook hadn't had the privacy of its users in mind. Hearing that the company had become rich by selling the data of its users to third-party companies was exactly what I had been glad to avoid all these years. That and Facebook got political in the past 5 years, making it look even worse to my eyes. Doesn't help that the owner stole the idea and program from his best friend and raked in millions on a lie.

Tips for Parents and Users

If you have any doubts about Facebook and how "great" it is, take my advice and either never use it or leave now while you still can. For parents and users, it's crucial to stay informed about online safety, protect your privacy, and ensure children understand the risks of oversharing online. Parents should also proactively engage with their children's online activity and maintain open lines of communication to address any concerns or issues.