As much as we'd like to think that blogging is a safe activity, anything dealing with the Internet requires a certain level of discretion and caution. This is especially true when dealing with educational blogs. Both children and personal information much be protected, and an unsecure blog might be a potentially dangerous outlet. The following blog attempt to provide guidelines for educational bloggers in developing safe and secure blogs.
1. Protecting Yourself
Blogs can be a great resource for fun and information, but, depending on the circumstances, can attract harmful circumstances. In extreme cases, stalkers and/or pedophiles my use information in blogs to track down or research victims. Bloggers should always remember that blogs are posted on the Internet and can be accessed by virtually anyone. You should 1) always be aware of and activate the privacy settings available on the blogging platform you use, 2) be mindful of potentially compromising information--like addresses, phone numbers, or geographically descriptive information--and use discretion when posting them, 3) never meet with anyone you only know through blogging. It is always better to be discrete with blogs and social media content.
In addition to the extreme situations above, difficulties more commonly arise from posting information that is incorrect, slanderous, confidential, or opinionated. Especially when representing a school or other organization, bloggers should heavily scrutinize the information they post on their site. Content should be above reproach, accurately represent facts, and not disclose confidential information. In one of my previous jobs, one of my co-workers got in trouble (and was fired in part) because of things they said outside of work being critical of the company. Slanderous information as well as plagiarized or non-cited information can cause serious legal problems, and incorrect information can damage the image of a company or school. Again, educational bloggers should adhere to a high standard of content before posting.
2. Protecting Others
Similarly as protecting yourself, bloggers should do everything that they can to ensure the safety of others on their blog. Especially for teachers using their blog to post student content, or allowing students to post their own original content, privacy should be of utmost concern. You should 1) always obtain release forms from students--signed by parents--prior to posting student content online, 2) always be the moderator for student content and not post any information that compromises the child's security in any way, and 3) allow parents to view student content and provide ways they can get in touch with you if they feel anything is unsafe.
3. Protecting Information & Equipment
Paramount in safe blogging is protecting both information and equipment from hacking or other types of predators. Again, privacy settings are one layer of defense, but also password protection and moderation are huge ways to protect information. Passwords should be difficult enough to prevent easy hacking (i.e. a good standard is at least 8 characters long and include letters, numbers, and symbols). Passwords should never be given to anyone and should be changed periodically.
Bloggers should also be aware of how to properly cite sources to protect intellectual property (IP). APA or MLA citations are always useful, but when citing Internet sources, using an HTML hyperlink directly to the site you got information from is also appropriate. Not only does this provide ready access to web content, but it also ensures a "backlink" to the external content which is helpful for search engine rankings and is always appreciated by the 3rd party.
4. Have a Plan of Action
Sometimes no matter what you do, bad things happen. Preventative action will eliminate 99% of difficulties, but in the case that difficulties do arise, institutions should have a plan of action that may include a mass password change, privacy settings or content audit, quick ways to remove compromising content, and notifying the proper authorities should the need arise. Each institution should have a well-defined and distributed plan of action to handle all conceivable cases.
Citations:
1. Microsoft. Safety Tips on Blogging. Retrieved on June 4, 2013 from: http://www.microsoft.com/security/family-safety/blogging.aspx
2. iLookBothWays, the Human Factor in Online Safety. Blogging. Retrieved on June 4, 2013 from:
http://ilookbothways.com/learn-safety/blogging/
3. wikiHow to do anything. How to Keep Your Blog Safe. Retrieved on June 4, 2013 from: http://www.wikihow.com/Keep-Your-Blog-Safe
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