Oversharing of Information on Social Networks - Research Paper Example

Oversharing of Information on Social Networks Ever since the advent of the social media, the world has changed a great deal in terms of how people interact over the internet. Indeed, social networking has brought a number of benefits to corporates, organizations, and even individuals (Rasquinha). Through social networks, people are able to share information in audio, video, image, and text forms, making it one of the most effective ways of communication (Mergel 87). Additionally, people may engage in one-on-one conversations over the social media platforms, enabling them to share information and keep updated on the latest trends. However, a vast majority of the social media users have resorted to sharing too much information that may compromises their integrity (Solomon 111). In essence, oversharing of information is a major problem in most networking sites, especially those with largely unregulated policies. In this regard, many people tend to share inappropriate content or too much personal information in on the social networks and this amount to oversharing of information in such platforms (MOAC 28). This paper therefore, examines the current trends, contributing factors, and impacts of oversharing of information on social networks. Social Networks Essentially, social media include all the sites in the internet that enable free interaction of people from different parts of the world. In such interaction, people can easily share multimedia files such as videos, images, and texts (Rasquinha). The use of social media enhances communication in a number of aspects. For instance, people can be able to chat online via the social networking sites besides having the option of doing online business. Initially, most people had the perception that social media was a tool that only friends and peers could use to interact especially in various situations (Solomon 111). Nonetheless, the mushrooming of various social networking sites, especially in the 21st century, has seen more individuals, corporates, and organization embrace the use of social media fully. One reason attributed to this is that one is able to reach and communicate to a large audience via social networking sites that in any other channel. The main social networking sites include Facebook, twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, You tube, Blogger, MySpace, and Flickr (Mergel 87). Major Uses of Social Networks Although the main use of social networking sites is social interaction, as the name suggests, the integration of various services in such sites has attracted a number of specialized clientele over the years (Rasquinha). In turn, this scenario has redefined social media as a business tool, a social tool, and as a professional tool (MOAC 28). Owing to this huge mix of clientele and personalities in such sites, it is important that users of such sites take exceptional care particularly when divulging personal information (Bryant). Other uses of social networking sites include business marketing, customer care service, social interaction, and educational purposes. Among all these uses, social interaction is the most popular (Mergel 87). Oversharing of Information on Social Networks Owing to the increased number of active users of social networking sites and the diverse services offered by such sites, many people have failed to establish the real purposes of such sites or they are simply ignorant about handling information (Mergel 87). For instance, some people go to extreme cases of sharing what is unwarranted in certain social networking sites. In essence oversharing of information is the sharing of either personal information or other party’s data inappropriately or in an unjustified manner (CMO). In this modern era, information is available to everyone who needs it due to the rapid advancements in technology. Consequently, people tend to misuse such privileges by posting uncouth material in social networking sites (Waters 54). In some instances, certain people post too much personal data on the social media to the extent that they expose even their secrets to potential enemies (MOAC 28). Furthermore, some people may have the tendency of sharing others’ personal information without the consent of the victims. This can be adversarial to the people whose information has been shared on the social media (Solomon 111). Additionally, employees of a particular organization may decide to share confidential information about the company they work for without due permission from the organization. Thus, the competitors of such an organization may take advantage of the free-flowing data to tarnish the image of the victim company (Mergel 87). Therefore, oversharing of information has many definitions depending on the side where one views the concept. For instance, other people consider divulging personal irrelevant information to the public though social networks while others prefer to expose the classified information of their own country (Mergel 87). All these amount to oversharing of information on social networks and subsequently attract different penalties depending on the extent of damage (Rasquinha). Usually, people tend to overshare when they are irrational in their thinking, for instance, people posting information about their silly acts and irrelevant occasions such as their menses (Waters 54). However, it is important to admit from the onset that virtually everyone is susceptible to oversharing of information, particularly on the social networks (MOAC 28). Although most of the people who are guilty of oversharing do not actually realize that they share too much information at the time of the actual act, they later come to their senses when the situation has gone out of their control and they can no longer manage information that has been leaked into the internet (Rasquinha). Oversharing of information on the social networks is a major problem not only in social spheres but also in the professional and business worlds (Waters 54). In this regard, there is a strong need to establish the major reasons why most of the social media users tend to overshare information and possible ways of averting such practices (Solomon 111). Reasons why people overshare information on Social Networks Despite the fact that social media sites have persistently given warnings to their users to stop divulging unnecessary information, particularly sensitive information, the percentage of oversharing users continues to grow by the day (Lovett 63). Definitely, several reasons exist as to why people develop a tendency to overshare information over the social media (Bryant). First, the fact that internet, and to a greater extent the social networking sites, provides one with a sense of anonymity leads many people to adopt oversharing as a way of using such sites (MOAC 28). Other people become guilt of such practices because there is no direct physical interaction in social media. Normally, this idea deceives them that they have a sense of security in terms of privacy and thus, they divulge all the information within their disposal (Solomon 111). Moreover, most social media sites such as Facebook allow their users to include age, sex, ethnicity, and location in their profiles and thus, such personal information may end up into the hands of corporations or at worst, stalkers (Mergel 87). Though some people overshare information because they are busy and have no time to filter out what is inappropriate or unjustified, others do so due to outright idleness (MOAC 28). It means that people tend to be unreasonable when they have no work or something to occupy themselves with and this way, they will tend to divulge too much personal information, especially on Facebook (Lovett 63). More often than not, such persons may take the things that they post on the social networking sites for granted and this often works against them and their reputation (Rasquinha). Lastly but more importantly, people usually tailor the information they want to share so that their friends and target audience may enjoy and utilize such information. Nonetheless, the information is available to everyone once posted, including those who were not supposed to get it. This often leads to oversharing of information via the social media (Solomon 111). Consequences of oversharing of information on Social Networks As always, any inappropriate conduct has consequences with the extent of such consequences depending on the gravity of their corresponding mistakes (Mergel 87). The ramifications of oversharing information on the social networks can be broadly categorized into three namely, professional, social, and personal consequences depending on the audience of the information, and how they reacted or used that information (MOAC 28). For instance, the social consequences can range from ridicule by friends and peers to being isolated by the same people hence, loneliness sets in. this can be the most traumatizing moment for anyone who has divulged too much personal information via the social media (Solomon 111). Additionally, people may face corporate consequences, particularly if they were oblivious that their respective companies were friends with them or were following them via the social media (Solomon 111). This can put them under awkward situations where they have to explain what they meant by certain utterances or practices in their social media accounts (Mergel 87). Normally, a person who overshares information via the social media is at risk of divulging to much personal information to the public or disclosing a company’s classified information over various social media platforms. It can reveal the character of the individual significantly and at the same time put them into predicaments (MOAC 28). Remedies for oversharing of information on Social Networks Undoubtedly, the rampant oversharing of information on the social networks has to be curtailed if a person has to reverse the negative impacts of such a practice (Mergel 87). Perhaps certain therapies can help reduce if not prevent, the incidences of information oversharing via the social media. One of the best strategies to avoid posting too much information on the social media is to avoid spending too much time in such sites unless need be (Solomon 111). In addition, people should always keep off social media when stressed or under anxiety, as this may lead them to divulge information that they would later regret. Perhaps the best remedy is to be rational whenever making comments of sharing information in any social networking site (MOAC 28). Conclusion In as much as the social networking sites offer some form of privacy, much of the information that users share is in the public domain whether shared partially. It means that such information may leak into corporations and stalkers, who may in turn use such information against the author. Therefore, users of social media especially the users of Facebook and Twitter, should take exceptional care, as such social networking sites have limited privacy due to vague privacy policies. Overall, everyone is individually responsible for posting too much and unwarranted information in any social networking site. Works Cited Bryant, C. W. Top 10 Things You Should Not Share on Social Networks. How Stuff Works. 2014. Web. 7 April 2014. CMO. Why Oversharing on Social Media is Changing Our Views on Privacy. 2014. Web. 7 April 2014. Lovett, John N. Social Media Metrics Secrets: Do What You Never Thought Possible with Social Media Metrics. Indianapolis, Ind: Wiley Pub, 2011. Print Mergel, Ines. Social Media in the Public Sector: A Guide to Participation, Collaboration, and Transparency in the Networked World. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2013. Print. MOAC, Auditing Social Media: A Governance and Risk Guide. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, 2011. Web. Rasquinha, Reagan Gavin. Are you oversharing on social media? The Indian times. 14 December 2013. Web. 7 April 2014. Solomon, Laura. Doing Social Media so It Matters: A Librarians Guide. Chicago: American Library Association, 2011. Print. Waters, John K. The Everything Guide to Social Media: All You Need to Know About Participating in Todays Most Popular Online Communities. Cincinnati: F+W Media, 2010. Print. Read More