New Hampshire Department of Justice’s Post

Finally! Although there is still much more to be done. And don't let this fool anyone into thinking children are now safe to have social media at any age, because one of the most important lessons to remember, is that the primary focus for the large majority of companies, regardless of sector, is how much they can maximise profit margins, and if they can design addiction into the product, and into your children, they certainly will. After all, when you only start to put appropriate safeguarding measures in place for vulnerable children and young people, due to legal force, that should be a very clear indicator that these organisations and services, do not have anyone's best interests at heart, except their share holders. 🫡 https://lnkd.in/eKyPQRv2 #Children #Leadership #Family #Management #Wellbeing #MentalHealth #Safeguarding #Future #SocialNetwork #SocialMedia

If no minors ever tried to set up unrestricted accounts and no adults ever tried to pass as under-age to interact with minors, maybe it wouldn't be so difficult to create a one-size-fits-all solution to protect children online (at least in this one aspect). As a parent, however, I know that even if social media platforms and apps just worked full-time to prevent predators from reaching our children, there are still other dangers like bullying, comparison traps, inappropriate content, and rabbit holes! It's difficult for parents to stay on top of every platform and every account that their children are active on, but we have to try, because complacency could mean the difference between life or death. Three things that may help you connect with your social-media savvy teen/tween: 1. Interact with your child and his/her friends in reality. You don't have to be the cringy "cool mom," but don't shy away from saying hi and asking about their lives, school, and activities. If you can relate, share a story about your life when you were a teen. The key word is "RELATE." Every generation has its differences, but the awkwardness of adolescence is pretty universal so try to focus on the similarities. 2. Interact with your child in cyber space. Follow your child's accounts and message them with funny or inspiring reels--especially ones that show that you care about their interests. If you see something inappropriate, talk about why it doesn't line up with your family's values and (even if you have the passwords and parental authority to delete the post yourself) allow your child to take it down or unfollow the account on their own. This will teach them integrity and personal responsibility. 3. Keep the lines of communication open with your child. Life is going to happen to our kids, so be compassionate, but try to keep your emotions out of it, and resist the urge to "make it about you." For example, a teen who feels tempted to do something they know is wrong is not a reflection of YOU and YOUR parenting. Find out why they feel that way, and try not to demonize their friends--it's just going to make them hold on tighter (even if they know that you're right). Be there for your child and give them the guidance and encouragement that they need. Children who feel heard at home are less likely to seek validation from outside sources such as friends or strangers on social media.

As Professor Selena Bartlett says in her new book, Being Seen: Mastering Parenting in the Digital Age, “Social media is the modern day childhood trauma.” As parents we worry constantly about in-person abuse, but really our children are more vulnerable online than anywhere else. Like Dr. Bartlett taught me in our upcoming podcast episode, caregivers and parents must use the tools we have to protect children because nobody else is. One way we can protect our children is by normalizing the topic of abuse prevention with our friends and family. Predators rely on adults to be silent to continue the abuse. Grab a copy of Being Seen on Amazon to learn how you can prevent online child abuse and exploitation. Link in comments. https://lnkd.in/e-3bEkZD #childwelfare #socialmedia #childrensmentalhealth

NYC mayor Eric Adams filed a lawsuit against TikTok, Meta, YouTube and Snap, alleging that their platforms are damaging to the mental health of children. Is this a valid claim? For someone who works in social media, I’d say yes and no. It’s been well documented that teen mental health has been worsening in recent years. The causality is far too complex to only link this to social media - but excessive social media use is definitely one of several factors at play. Regardless, social media is here to stay, and these apps are only becoming increasingly more powerful as the best ways to build brands. It’s undeniable - even Eric Adams has large presences on these platforms he’s suing. I’m all for healthy social media use, but I’m definitely against the ban that NYC is recommending for kids under 14. And for what it’s worth, I think AI poses far more dangers to society than social media. Lawmakers have bigger issues to focus on. It will be VERY interesting to see who wins NYC vs. Social Media. Comment below what you predict will happen in this case!

📣 📣 Parents and social media 📣 📣 I've heard a lot of things said about this topic - "Parents need to be parents" - "Parents need to stop trying to be liked by their child" - “It’s not the government’s job to protect kids. It’s the parents' job” My thoughts?  - Blaming or attacking parents takes us further away from solutions. - This is a difficult and complex issue. Parents need compassion and support in how they navigate it with their child. The current lack of regulation of social media use in children leads to two clear problems for parents: 1. Some are not aware of the type of harmful content their child sees on social media. They have not seen adequate information about its risks and assume that a) because so many of their child’s friends are on it, that it must be ok or b) they do not want their child to miss out on connecting with friends. 2. Others are highly concerned about the risks and not allowing their child to have social media yet. They are in the difficult position of their child feeling left out, upset and this causes conflict. They also do not want their child to miss out on connecting with friends. In both cases, parents are faced with challenges that have risks to their child's wellbeing. This is where the current situation of 13-year-old minimum with no age verification makes these parent dilemmas so much worse. It can give the false sense that social media use does not pose serious risks. This is one reason why Newscorp have launched #LetThemBeKids campaign that calls for improved age verification and raised social media minimum age to 16 years. As a psychologist and researcher, I fully support this campaign.  I am one of 30k people who have signed the petition in its first week. Take a moment to think of restricted products: gambling, tobacco, alcohol, MA15+ or R18+ movies and gaming. These products have such risks to youth that there are laws that prevent accessing them. This is known to parents, and they have a clear foundation to make decisions around their child’s requests in these areas.  They have a harm minimisation effect. We need the same for social media. The potential good it can achieve is enormous. #LetThemBeKids is a critical step in the right direction. But we need other changes too. Including, much better parent support, easily accessible information, evidence-informed programs and the absence of parent blame. Parents are the single most protective feature we have for the future of young people. We need to do much more to support them in this area. #bodyimage #eatingdisorders #socialmedia #mentalhealth Professor Selena Bartlett Frances Haugen Peter Malinauskas Zoe Daniel Emma McBride Susan Templeman Andrew Wallace Anthony Albanese Janet Grima Jen Hoey Melinda Tankard Reist Neil Milton Dr Mark Williams Julie Inman - Grant ANZAED InsideOut Institute for Eating Disorders Eating Disorders Families Australia National Eating Disorders Collaboration Butterfly Foundation

In this video I have listed a number of the Manifesting behaviours (there is 8 in total) seen in children impacted by the process of #parentalalienation https://lnkd.in/ejRw9TYH

Not in our Backyard...! The up and coming social commentator and penal reformer from the United Kingdom; David Breakspear, raises important awareness towards the language and outdated ideologies expressed within Local Government Councils over marginalised populations. Leaving aside the somewhat outdated and incorrect assumption that autism is a dissability; what would be wrong in having a small 6 bedded community prison in the same locality? What it does illustrate, for all sectors mentioned in the Editorial comment (e.g. Looked after Children, Learning Disabilities and Offenders etc.), is the prejudice society has towards them, especially within local government representatives. Sadly David, its not just our Prison Estates that can benefit from Education, Training and effective Rehabilitation, but also the wider public and moreover, the Counsellors who represent them. It's a bit like what comes first, 'the rotten egg, or the rotten chicken'. Change could take 50 years, because we need to start with the mindset towards educating the yet unborn soul of our youngest Grandchild. Perhaps then, we will work towards changing the current (on the whole) bystander apathetic society, who simply observes central government's continuing short term mistakes and destruction of communities, education, health, housing, industry, social services and justice; by standing up and saying enough is ENOUGH! Empowered Communities thrive...! #childrensservices #socialservices #education #health #housing #ukindustry #justicesystem #justicereform #communities #ukgovernment #prisonreform #prison #autism #learningdisabilities

P*rn isn’t a private indulgence, but a ‘public health crisis’... As 16 US states have declared. Surveys, studies, & stats reveal the same: 47% of US families report p*rn-related issues. 84% of male underage teens have seen p*rn. 56% of US divorces involve p*rn use. 33% of ‘p*rn addicts’ reported losing their jobs. Most shocking of all? 1 in 10 kids under the age of 10 have watched p*rn — with the youngest reported viewer being only 3 years old! “P*rnography hurts adults, children, couples, families, and society”, wrote psychologist Pat D Fagan. There are forces striving to fight p*rn’s carnage — be it NoPMO forums, gung-ho YouTubers, or 12-step Anonymous groups. But p*rn is far too powerful for willpower or motivation — it’s (proven to be) as addictive as cocaine... And it’s available 24/7 one click away — in limitless supply. That's where this multi-layered tamper-proof blocking system comes in - across your iOS, Android, Windows, Linux, and MacOS devices. Access this for 100% free with the clickable image-link below 👇 P.S. Also, don't forget to share this life-transforming blocking system with friends, family, (fellow) parents, or acquaintances in need. Godspeed! #addiction #mentalhealth #recovery

‘Not letting me on Snapchat was the best thing my mum ever did for me’: how to talk to your kids about social media   Ryan Lowe, child and adolescent psychotherapist and ACP member, spoke to Annalisa Barbieri for the The Guardian about the impact social media can have on young people’s developing identity and self-esteem.    The article discusses the challenges of parenting in the digital age and how to limit the potential harm to children and young people caused by social media.    #parenting #mentalhealth #selfesteem #childrensmentalhealth To read the article: https://lnkd.in/gNh8wGSk

‼️PSA for anyone working with people who have an intellectual disability and the individual is using Snapchat‼️ I do a lot of online safety work in my role, and recently all of the young people and adults who have an ID are using a feature known as 'snapmap' where anyone you add can see your real time location. For people who keep a private friends list this can be *okay*, but most of my clients are in the habit of adding randoms, and random men from dating apps. So we've got this situation where super vulnerable women (and men) with ID are sharing their location with strange men at all times. Including the locations of their group homes, placing all the other participants at risk too. None of my clients know how to turn this off, and I've spent alot of time working with clients to teach them this skill. Please assist your clients/person with ID to turn this feature off. Individuals can turn this back on, and I understand everyones right to the online world, but building the capacity to engage in consequential thinking particularly when ID is involved can be fraught, and I'm of the view requires some ongoing monitoring by people without cognitive impairment. Please share with relevant networks ‼️‼️ #onlinesafety #intellectualdisability #autism #ndis