Digital Footprint

Week One’s blog is regarding digital footprint, for those who are not familiar with this, digital footprint can be described as what individuals decide to share online. It is important to be careful of what one post or writes in a virtual world since it will always be there.  As mentioned by Virginia (n.d) on Netiquette “ cyberspace has its own culture … you might offend people without meaning”. One must always be careful on what they decide to share online. It is better to limit oneself on their opinions than experience conflict with others opinions online.

This blog will discuss the importance of having a positive digital footprint and the strategies that will allow an individual to use digital footprint positively.

I personally believe, not only should we be learning how to create a positive digital footprint but children and youth should also be educated early on. This should be taken into consideration and implemented into the curriculum. Therefore, children and youth will be educated on how to convey their voices through the web. Luca (2011) indicates, “ As young as they are, they need to cultivate their personal brand”. Having a digital footprint allows ourselves to freely speak our minds, and give acquaintances, co-workers, employers and even admissions officers the opportunity to gain knowledge about individuals and what they have achieved and have to offer.  For example, LinkedIn is a positive digital footprint is used for career related reasons. One can make a professional profile to help attract more job opportunities. With LinkedIn, one can post previous occupations, describe their strengths and skills. Furthermore provide a summary of whom they are and what they hope to achieve. This allows employers to understand an individual and based off their skills and previous work experience whether or not the individual can be an asset to the company. Although, Facebook is used for a different purpose compared to LinkedIn but is considered a positive digital footprint. Facebook profiles have more to do with socializing and posting memorable pictures, events and facts to share with friends and family. One must always be careful of what he/she should post on Facebook. For every job I have worked, the mangers have told me that they tried viewing my profile online to see weather or not I could be a great fit for their company. Many places do not like to hire individuals if they find inappropriate pictures and etc online of the applicant. This just goes to show that how one perceives them online can have a great impact on how others perceive them.  Overall, in order to have a positive digital footprint, individuals should create a professional profile and upload pictures and blogs that showcase their interest and their lifestyle.

Some strategies that individuals should use in order to maintain a positive digital footprint is to keep track of everything posted and what might pop up with their name. For example, when I did the scavenger hunt, I typed my name into Google and so many Raman’s popped up.  I was able to see a lot of individuals who have the same name as me on Facebook.  You can also see my profile off of Google, however my privacy settings have allowed me to keep my profile private on the web. Only those who are friends with me are able to view my profile. Individuals should sign up for a Google account as this will allow them to be aware of what might be posted about them online. In order to have a positive digital footprint, one must be aware of what others might be uploading about them online. Other strategies to keep in my mind are to have socialmention that will allow one to receive notifications of anyone mentioning one on any social media site. Most importantly watch what to post, because you do not want to offend anyone.

Lastly, there is a strong correlation between netiquette and a positive digital footprint. Netiquette provides ten rules, to help an individual from creating a positive and professional profile on the web. In terms of blogging, twitter and etc. It is important to respect others and behave in a respectful manner. You always want to treat others the same way as one wants to be treated in reality and in a virtual world. It is better to know your restrictions than share something online that may offend someone. Additionally, it is important to share knowledge; this is a great way of learning and sharing valuable information that may help someone.

I hope this weeks blog, has helped everyone understand the importance of having a digital footprint and reasons as to why we need to take precaution when posting anything online.