Social Discovery or Cyber Stalking?

Some of you may read this and wonder what Social Discovery is; if you work with youth or are a parent you need to know.  Social Discovery is a new brand of apps (from phones to tablets to PCs) that are increasing in popularity; especially among youth and young adults.  Perhaps if I threw a name like Foursquare out there, some of you might go, “oh, that.”  To name a few, Foursquare, Who’s Here, Highlight, and even Facebook’s “check in” feature fall under this new genre of apps.

What is social discovery?  It’s a service that you sign up for and then you ‘check in’ where ever you are.  After you check in people can see that you are there.  For an example let’s use “John Smith” and “Jane Doe” at a local cafe.  John Smith walks into the local cafe and orders his favorite coffee.  While he waits he logs into a Social Discovery App and checks in.  He can even have it post to his Facebook account if he wants.  He gets his coffee and sits down.  Jane Doe walks in and orders a wrap and a smoothie.  While she waits she uses the same Social Discovery App John Doe used and checks in.  John Doe has his settings on public so Jane can see that John is here.  Jane now has an opportunity to approach John based on the fact they are both using the same app service – which is used to discover new people at the places you frequent.  Still with me?

So the purpose of these apps are two fold – one, publicly let others who use the same app (Foursquare, Who’s Here, Highlight, etc) have the possibility of discovering you by being at the same place at the same time using the same app.  Two, it allows friends to follow where you have been and get your feedback on how you liked the place; you can even take pictures and leave comments and tips about the establishment.  Facebook’s new timeline check in feature even displays a map to all of those who have access to your page to see exactly where you have been, how many times, and any photos connected with that check in.  This is where I see the danger.

If people can publicly access information on where you are and when, and even see habits out of that public information – it presents itself on the borderline of stalker.  If you’re on Facebook a lot I’m sure one of you’re ‘friends’ has become a ‘Facebook Stalker.’  Have someone who comments on everything you do, or likes all your activity? yea… that’s a Facebook Stalker.  But the danger with ‘discovering’ new people and literally broadcasting your exact location to anyone presents a whole can of worms that no one is really considering.  Meeting new people is cool, and you could even set up your own ‘blind date’ by using these apps.  But what about things like human trafficking?  Okay, an extreme, yes, but a big issue even in a modern country like the USA.  I could easily see predators using these apps to get at those who allow themselves to be more vulnerable.

With all that said, where do you stand?  Do you use one of these apps, do you see the dangers, or do you feel they are completely safe?  Feel free to comment below as I see this becoming a hot topic within the next year if it isn’t already.

Source :  SXSW