Who Knew Kids Could Be Such an Online Liability?

When discussing Online Community Management, never did I think that children would be such a risky target audience. In fact, it seems as if sites targeted toward children would have simple ideas and “easy-to-bring-to-life” concepts. However, today’s speakers definitely negated that notion entirely.

I did not realize that children’s ages were such a critical factor in legal terms online. Children 13 and younger have different ground rules compared to kids 14 and older. Even E-commerce restricts access to “adults” at least 18 years or older. Before I was 18, I remember wanting to sign-up for an online raffle, but I was not old enough and tried to entice my parents to sign-up for me. This last lecture thoroughly explained its purpose.

Erica’s stories about her job with Disney.com are such telling examples of the disastrous public relations possibilities. I had no idea that 99% of the children’s chat consisted of cybersex. Kids who manage to meet others via online software systems and websites actually encounter date rape, which completely horrifies me. Even though times have definitely changed since a decade ago and the relevant aspects that define “childhood” have moved significantly online, I can reflect on how ignorant I was as a child.

At 13-years-old, I would have been one of Mrs. Field’s customers who signed up for free cookies on my birthday. Although this may be naïve, I feel badly for Mrs. Fields, because their intent to distribute cookies as a basic promotional item seemed innocent enough. But then again, having e-mail addresses at the turn of the teenager years still boggles my mind.

This topic also reminds me of a concept I learned in Karen’s undergraduate class last semester. One of the speakers had a background in legal matters online and talked to the class about how policies worked. One of the biggest takeaway points: NEVER save a picture of a naked child online onto your computer. We were told that it is an automatic violation, so I can’t imagine the repercussions of showing a naked child on a website. And then we delved into the concept of naked anime cartoon characters and it just became a complicated mess.

Case in point: if you’re starting a website with children as your main, targeted niche, enter with care. Personally, the risk is too high and I’ll probably stand clear.