During a career planning class, Brenda Fabian, former director of the Career Development Center at Susquehanna University, asked how many students used online social media. Almost everyone in the room raised their hand. Then she asked how many knew that employers were reviewing online social media for hiring purposes. No hands were raised, and their faces revealed their surprise.
Although some parents do keep track of their teen’s online activities, most teenagers don’t realize that websites may be monitored by schools, future employers or anyone else that might be interested in their lifestyle not just today but anytime in the future.
Most of us don’t realize that the information that gets posted on the Internet may be deleted, but it doesn’t disappear permanently. “The stuff is there forever,” says Jamie Riehle, director of Product Management at Lycos. “It is backed up onto servers and doesn’t go away.”
As company recruiters, college admission officers, law enforcement personnel and parents become more Web learned, it becomes even more vital for teenagers to be cautious when they post any information on their websites. Even though sites that are private can be seen only by a preselected list of friends, there are companies that, for a fee, can dig deeper into cyberspace and find anything. Even government officials who thought that deleting emails would exonerate them from wrongdoing are discovering that, on the Web, there is nothing that is private or gone forever.
Steven Rothberg, founder of College Recruiter, suggests that teenagers think of their Web posts as tattoos. “Naturally, there is nothing wrong with them if they are private,” he says. “But if they are visible or offensive, they can affect the way others see you.”
14. What is implied in the second paragraph?
A.The Internet is becoming more insecure. |
B.A teenager shouldn’t write about his lifestyle online. |
C.It’s hard for parents to know their teen’s online activities. |
D.One posting negative things may have his employment affected. |
15. What can we learn about the information posted on the Internet?
A.It can be deleted easily. | B.It remains for a short time. |
C.It can’t be deleted completely. | D.It usually falls into the hands of employers. |
16. What do we know about sites that are private?
A.They are not so private as supposed. | B.They are owned by some companies. |
C.They charge people for visiting them. | D.They can keep the information a secret. |
17. Which of the following would be Steven Rothberg’s belief?
A.Teenagers should be monitored online. |
B.Teenagers should be cautious about their posts online. |
C.Teenagers should keep their information open online. |
D.Teenagers should not be allowed to post anything online. |