Aaron LawlessToday’s world we are connected together every day using social media. According to the article on pro and con “Is Social Media a Good Thing”, 6/12/14, more than 74% of people in the United States of America are on some sort of social media. Whether it would be Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Linkedin, Youtube, or even Pinterest. On these social media sites the user may create a profile that will let you communicate, talk, or show videos to the world. This sounds great at first until the user finds out what social media sites are doing to their life. Students who use heavy social media can see a loss in productivity, lack of homework being turned in, less face to face talking, or even stress in relationships. Most people don’t notice that there are differences in their life. This article will explain the cons of using social media,the effects of using social networks. First what are the cons.

Social media can spread false information to the world which can’t be simply deleted. If someone sees it they will talk about it to someone else later. 49.1% of people have heard false information on the internet. There have been many cases where a single false post will cause chaos. Another con is that there is a lack of privacy for the user. If you post a picture of yourself the rest of the world is able to see it. According to the article on pro and con “Is Social Media a Good Thing”, 6/12/14, 13 million users do not set or don’t know there is a privacy setting on Facebook and 28% shared every post publicly. Don’t you are protected from the government either, over 1,661 pieces of information were intercepted by the US Justice Department.

Another con is that it is harder to get a job when you maintain a social media account. Job employers look at your social media page to see what you are doing. If they found obscenity such as alcohol, drugs, sexual content, or even poor spelling the chances are they won’t hire you. Something else that the users aren’t protected from are viruses and Identity theft.  According to the article on pro and con “Is Social Media a Good Thing”, 6/12/14, Over 68% share pieces of information that is  frequently used for account security verification and can be used for identity theft. Social media sites don’t check for viruses on their site, this leads to people having computer problems in the future.  According to the article on pro and con “Is Social Media a Good Thing”, 6/12/14, Social media spreads hate groups. Many hate groups use social media networks to gather people into their group. Another con is Social media posts cannot be completely deleted and some information posted will have consequences. If you post something that will cause chaos, the post can’t be completely deleted of the internet. There are many cons but, what are the effects of them?
Using social media networks has its defects. One of the defects are that students that use heavy social media have lower grades than the people who are not on social networks. According to the article on pro and con “Is Social Media a Good Thing”, 6/12/14, Students who use social media score 20% lower on test and have a 0.76 difference in their grade point average or gpa, compared to the people who don’t use social media. Another point is that social media causes arguments with the people you have a relationship with. According to a Feb. 9, 2012 Pew Internet report, 15% social network users had an experience online that caused a relationship to end, 12% of users had an experience online that resulted in a argument. Social media also can be used to waste time and productivity. According to the article on pro and con “Is Social Media a Good Thing”, 6/12/14, 40% people under the age of 18 spend 54 mins or more on social media networks and they say it is the “biggest waste of time”. That is not including the time it takes to get back on track. On a average it take a person 25 to 30 minutes to get back on track to what they were doing before they went on social media. Using social media causes less face to face communication. According to the article on Elon University,   The Effect of Technology on Face-to-Face Communication, 32% people use phones at the diner table and 10% of people would rather respond online than face to face. Social media also promotes people to commit crimes. Criminals use social media to commit crimes and promote them. People post pictures of their house, vacation plans, or even the mail they get. This information helps the robber know about the victims that they are about to steal from. Another point is that social networking can lead to hiding of character or depression. According to the article on pro and con “Is Social Media a Good Thing”, 6/12/14, social media gives the user a higher risk for depression, low self of steam, and even eating disorders. Education is affected too, students in California, Houston, and New York City posted pictures of standardized test online allowing the other students to see the test before they took it. There has also been cases where the student posted the questions on Twitter and cheated that way.

It is becoming clear that social networks have become part of people’s lives. Social networks can be a helpful tool. Unfortunately the risks of privacy, safety, health, and social skills fall into place. This article explained the cons of social networks, and the effects of social media. Social media can be used for many prestigious things, but if the user is not careful they could end up with the effects of social media.