Tips For Parents And Teens Who Use Facebook

WASHINGTON - If you've been a fan from the start, or you saw the hit movie "The Social Network", you know Facebook was initially designed for college students.
 
Today it boasts more than 500 million members from young people all the way up to senior citizens.
"If they (Facebook's users) were a country they'd be the third largest country behind China and India, so it's huge," says CBS Technology Analyst Larry Magid.
 
Teens are actually a minority on Facebook, although lots of teens use it. Local 15-year-old Ben says Facebook's "Chat" feature is now one of the main ways he keeps in touch with friends.
 
"If I ever need to a reach a friend I'll just jump on my computer and hop on Facebook," Ben says. "If they're online, then I know I'll get a hold of them in two seconds." Ben thinks it's easier than calling or texting someone.
 
One problem is a number of kids who join Facebook are too young.
 
"The minimum age is 13, although a study was done independently that said...37 percent of 10-to-12-year-olds are on Facebook, and each one of them is lying about their age to get on, " says Magid.
 
If you have a pre-teen child, it's a good idea to learn about Facebook, because they might already be using it, or will become interested in joining soon.
 
"I don't think my parents even knew what Facebook was when I joined," says Zach, another area 15-year-old.
 
Magid says for teens who meet the age requirement, there are great privacy protections tailored specifically for them.
 
"If you're between 13 and 17, there are some controls. For example (in the privacy settings), the definition of 'Everyone' for a minor is actually 'Friends', 'Friends of Friends' and 'Networks.' It's not literally everyone. So even if you set the maximum public exposure, you're still not really exposed to the entire public."
 
Using Facebook means you have to be careful at a very young age about posting things that could come back to bite you later in life. Photos of young people holding plastic party cups with mysterious beverages in them are particularly problematic, because colleges are using Facebook to scope out student applicants.

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