What is a digital footprint?
Your digital footprint is the digital record of everything you do online - whether it's visiting a website, sending an email, chatting with friends, posting a review of an app and or writing on your friend's Facebook wall. Your digital footprint is your online presence. It's important to remember to share and create content responsibly because even though you're doing these things online, you may have to face serious consequences in real life. Your digital footprint isn't your online life, it's your life online!
Sharing things online that are ethically questionable, inappropriate or that can be taken out of context can affect you for the rest of your life. What's published online is usually permanent, and you never have total control over your privacy when you use an application or website. Even when you think you're only sharing something with your closest friends, you should be cautious. It's easy for others to take screenshots, copy and paste or hack into others' accounts and see what you've been sharing.
Sharing things online that are ethically questionable, inappropriate or that can be taken out of context can affect you for the rest of your life. What's published online is usually permanent, and you never have total control over your privacy when you use an application or website. Even when you think you're only sharing something with your closest friends, you should be cautious. It's easy for others to take screenshots, copy and paste or hack into others' accounts and see what you've been sharing.
24% of admissions
officers check the
social media presence
of their applicants!
(That's a 140% increase from only 10% in 2008.)
Read the article yourself: Facebook Checking is No Longer Unchartered Territory in College Admissions: Percentage of Admissions Officers Who Visited An Applicant’s Profile On the Rise from Kaplan Test Prep Online
A case study: the real life impact of a digital footprint
Alexandra Wallace, a third-year political science student at UCLA, posted a video rant to YouTube about the Asian students she had encountered in the library during her exams week. Underestimating the inappropriateness of her timing (the massively fatal earthquake and tsunami in Japan had occurred only days earlier), her handling of the sensitive subject matter and the size of her viewing audience, Alexandra's reputation tanked overnight. Despite quickly deleting her video from YouTube after the onslaught of comments and phone calls began, others had already copied and re-posted it from their accounts in droves. Cyberbullies found her home address and sent hatemail and death threats. They called her so frequently that she had to change her number multiple times. They flooded her YouTube inbox with response videos and verbal attacks.
Since then, she's had to withdraw from school, move back in with her parents and and go into hiding. A simple Google search for "Alexandra Wallace" returns 11,800,000 results, and unfortunately for her, they're mostly negative. What should Alexandra have thought about before posting that video? How and to what extent has her future been impacted by her digital footprint?
Since then, she's had to withdraw from school, move back in with her parents and and go into hiding. A simple Google search for "Alexandra Wallace" returns 11,800,000 results, and unfortunately for her, they're mostly negative. What should Alexandra have thought about before posting that video? How and to what extent has her future been impacted by her digital footprint?
Protect your reputation by maintaining a healthy digital footprint
Before hitting "Share" or "Post," ask yourself, "Would I want my parents to see this?"
What about your boss? Your crush? What about people you haven't met yet? Consider whether posting that picture or making that comment might affect your chances later of landing a great job or getting into your dream school. It's hard to predict what you or your goals might look like in 10 years, but try. A little extra thought now may save you a lot of trouble and explanation later.
Make your digital footprint a POSITIVE one!
Love to play sports? Volunteer on the weekends? Have a special talent for creating digital art? Make sure that your digital footprint reflects what matters the most to you. If an admissions officer or hiring/recruiting manager checks your profile, make sure it's a positive experience for them and that they get the most accurate picture of who you are. You never know- it might be the deciding factor when it comes to getting admitted or hired!
Want to get an idea of what your digital footprint is?
Click here to Google yourself! Stay on top of your digital footprint before it crushes you. Google yourself periodically or set up a Google Alert for your name. Whenever something is published containing your name, you'll be emailed an Alert.
What about your boss? Your crush? What about people you haven't met yet? Consider whether posting that picture or making that comment might affect your chances later of landing a great job or getting into your dream school. It's hard to predict what you or your goals might look like in 10 years, but try. A little extra thought now may save you a lot of trouble and explanation later.
Make your digital footprint a POSITIVE one!
Love to play sports? Volunteer on the weekends? Have a special talent for creating digital art? Make sure that your digital footprint reflects what matters the most to you. If an admissions officer or hiring/recruiting manager checks your profile, make sure it's a positive experience for them and that they get the most accurate picture of who you are. You never know- it might be the deciding factor when it comes to getting admitted or hired!
Want to get an idea of what your digital footprint is?
Click here to Google yourself! Stay on top of your digital footprint before it crushes you. Google yourself periodically or set up a Google Alert for your name. Whenever something is published containing your name, you'll be emailed an Alert.
created by Mary Deifer