IT 002 - Social Media Use Recommendations

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY POLICY: Social Media Use Recommendations

Seton Hill University encourages the use of social media technology to enhance communication, engagement, collaboration and information exchange in support of its mission. Blogs, social networks and interactive websites are exciting channels for you to share knowledge, express your creativity and connect with others who share your interests. The use of social media technology follows the same standard of student conduct outlined in the Student Handbook. A University representative will monitor what is posted online on public profiles, and inappropriate or questionable activity may be brought to the attention of coaches, professors, campus security and/or residence directors. Any behavior that violates University policies will be treated as an opportunity to educate the student, and a conduct sanction may occur. Use common sense and thoughtful judgment when embarking on social media.

General Recommendations for Social Media Use:

Privacy and security settings exist for a reason.
Learn about and use the privacy and security settings on social networks. They are designed to help you control who sees what you post and manage your online experience in a positive way.
Be respectful.
Social media often opens a conversation that may generate negative or confrontational comments. Vigorous discussion can create an intellectual and engaging conversation or it can harm your identity.
Consider your audiences.
Social media often span traditional boundaries between professional and personal relationships. Use privacy settings to restrict personal information on otherwise public sites. Choose profile photos and avatars carefully. While the use of profile photos and avatars reflects an individual’s personality, be thoughtful about the type of photos and avatars you use as they are open to interpretation by your audience.
Once posted, always posted.
Protect your reputation on social networks. What you post online stays online. Think twice before posting pictures you wouldn’t want your parents or future employers to see. Recent research (http://press.careerbuilder.com/2017-06-15-Number-of-Employers-Using-Social-Media-to-Screen-Candidates-at-All-Time-High-Finds-Latest-CareerBuilder-Study) found that 54% of job recruiters rejected candidates based on social media profiles.
Your online reputation can be a good thing.
Recent research (http://www.microsoft.com/privacy/dpd/research.aspx) also found that recruiters respond to a strong, positive personal brand online. So show your smarts, thoughtfulness, and mastery of the environment.
Keep personal information personal.
Be cautious about how much personal information you provide on social networking sites. The more information you post, the easier it may be for a hacker or someone else to use that information to steal your identity, access your data, or commit other crimes such as stalking.
Know and manage your friends.
Social networks can be used for a variety of purposes. Use tools to manage the information you share with friends in different groups or even have multiple online pages. If you’re trying to create a public persona as a blogger or expert, create an open profile or a “fan” page that encourages broad participation and limits personal information. Use your personal profile to keep your real friends (the ones you know trust) more synced up with your daily life.
Be honest if you’re uncomfortable.
If a friend posts something about you that makes you uncomfortable or you think is inappropriate, let them know. Likewise, stay open-minded if a friend approaches you because something you’ve posted makes him or her uncomfortable. People have different tolerances for how much the world knows about them. Respect those differences.
Know what action to take.
- If someone is harassing or threatening you, remove them from your friends list, block them, and report them to the site administrator.
- If you have been named in an inappropriate social media account, you are strongly encouraged to notify the site of the action.
  - For Twitter, you can file an abuse ticket by going to https://support.twitter.com/forms/abusiveuser.
  - For Facebook, you can report specific posts by clicking on the down arrow in the upper right corner of the post and select “report/mark as spam.” Once you have done that, you get an option to “Report this content as abusive.”
  - For more information on reporting inappropriate items on Facebook, try here: https://www.facebook.com/help/www/181495968648557?rdrhc.