1. How might your digital footprint affect your future opportunities? Give at least two examples.

My digital footprint could affect my future when applying for jobs or when applying for university. If a possible employer sees negative things you may have posted or said on the internet, they are probably less likely to hire you. Same thing for a university. It could also impact your relationship with your friends if they see something rude that you posted. Your friends can find images and comments you post, and they may not appreciate a friend that posts mean things on the internet. Also, if you post something mean about someone, that person could find it and they will probably not be happy that you posted it. Finally, you might have posted an image of something illegal that you did, or you could have posted an illegal comment, and there might be legal consequences. You should try to use social media and the internet to create a positive impact and make friends, not hurt people.

2. Describe at least three strategies that you can use to keep your digital footprint appropriate and safe.

To keep my digital footprint appropriate and safe I can THINK (is it true, is it hurtful, is it illegal, is it necessary, and is it kind) before posting anything, I can avoid posting the location of my house or school, and I can avoid mentioning the names of family members and friends. If I always think about the impact of what I am posting, then I will not post things that could endanger me, such as posting personal information, or post things that could endanger others, such as the names of my friends or their addresses. If I use the THINK acronym, I will avoid hurting others on the internet, and doing anything that is illegal. If you are on social media, you can change the setting of your account to keep it more private, but you have to understand that everything you post is permanent, and once you post it, even if it was on a private account, people can find ways to see it.

3. If you could go back in time, is there anything you would do differently online? Think of what type of advice you would pass on to your younger self or other students. How could you go about explaining it to them?

If I could go back in time, I do not think I would change anything or do anything different online. I do not use any social media, so I generally do not post anything, and I have definitely never posted personal information about my school or my address. I would tell my younger self and other students that what you post and how often you post will have an affect not just on your career, but also on your social life. I would explain that to them by showing them how distracting social media can be and how concerned people are with their social media. I would advise them to only post images and words that were really important and meaningful to them, not just posting for the sake of posting. If everybody only posted inspiring things, we would probably be less distracted by our social media, less people would be hurt, less people would have the chance to regret things they had said, and the environment online would probably be more inviting and happy.