Kids and Facecbook

Just curious if I am out in left field on this one...

a friend of mine (*seriously, this is not a euphemism) has 3 kids. ages 15, 10 (just tuned), and 10. the 2 10 year olds are 10 months apart (Yep, that quick).

anyway, all 3 have facebook profiles. and all 3 profiles say they are 16 (they all got FB profiles 3 years ago... at that point they were 12, 7, and 6.. because their friends had them.). Am I wrong in thinking this is just plain a bad idea? I mean in 2 years, the youngest will have a profile that says she is 18, but will in reality be 12. as a side comment, if someone was making lewd suggestions on FB to her in 2 years.. could they be charged with anything along the lines of corruption of a minor, since the profile says she is 18?

FYI: I do not have kids, but I would be loathe to even let them have FB accounts even if they WERE 13 (what the TOS says you have be to have an FB account). Facebook is an ugly place.

(ok, this more of a venting... but I do wonder what people's views on kids having FB accounts is.)

My kids (7,7,9) do not have FB and probably won't until age 13 and I will have the passwords.

Why? will give a view in to their lives that they may not share with us as parents.

Will they create accounts behind our backs? It wouldn't surprise me and I will most likely have to confiscate any digital devices at that point.

However, 4 years from now, Facebook may be passe' and I'll worry about something else

My 10 year old begs us to let her get a facebook account - I told her we follow the rules.

If facebook says 13? then she can get it on her 13th birthday.

My 13yr old (just turned) asked for one for his birthday. His mother agreed and only under the condition that she has his password and is on his "friend" list. I do not have an account, voiced my dissent and said that I was not to be involved.

Two days later my wife took his account away because he "liked" something inappropriate for a 13yr old.

For the record... it wasn't anything really bad - he rides a public school bus every day and I was 13 once... I know what he and his friends are talking about. My wife just cannot handle that sort of knowledge.

I said "I told you" about 400x today because that is the sort of person I am.

My newborn will have to learn how to build a working pc before she can even think about having an e-mail account let alone a facebook.

Lucky for her she'll know how to build a lawnmower engine before she ever touches any kind of pc hardware.

Grtechguy wrote: However, 4 years from now, Facebook will be passe' and I'll worry about something else

FTFY. But something else will take it's place.

My kids (ages just turned 9, 5, 5) don't have Facebook. My 9 year old knows about the site, but doesn't know much about it. My twins are barely aware it exists. Then again, I've only been on the site once in my life and my wife very rarely uses it either. Oh, and if my kids ask about it, no way on earth I'm letting them have an account.

I didn't realize FB had an age limit? I doubt my step-sister or her shiny happy person husband care in any case. (I do believe she's around 11 and has had one at least a year.)

Here is a good reason not to let your daughters have them. There are somethings you never, ever want to know.

Lamebook, is fake. but good point.

Jerry wrote: I didn't realize FB had an age limit? I doubt my step-sister or her shiny happy person husband care in any case. (I do believe she's around 11 and has had one at least a year.)

Did I read this right? Your step-sister is 11 years old and has a husband?

They met on facebook.

My wife downloaded me off the internet.

I was a hardware upgrade.

On topic though a couple years shy of the 16 year old mark isn't too bad with draconian supervision. But prior to that why do they need to be on Facebook? Status update "Going out to play kickball."

Neckromacr wrote: My wife downloaded me off the internet. I was a hardware upgrade.

Did you give her some new firmware?

Grtechguy wrote: However, 4 years from now, Facebook may be passe' and I'll worry about something else

It definitely will. Facebook is now pulling an older crowd.
http://www.buzzfeed.com/jwherrman/are-teens-abandoning-social-networks

myspace==>facebook==>snapchat/instagram/pinterest==>???

Yep they'll all jump on the next hot new thing eventually. I'm so glad Facebook wasn't around when i was a kid.

My 13yo son has an account on the condition that his mother has full access to it. For the most part, he doesn't use it much. Maybe checks in once a week.

Neckromacr wrote: My wife downloaded me off the internet. I was a hardware upgrade.

I would be worried about your software as you get older

DirtyBird222 wrote: My newborn will have to learn how to build a working pc before she can even think about having an e-mail account let alone a facebook. Lucky for her she'll know how to build a lawnmower engine before she ever touches any kind of pc hardware.

Why? I don't get it. I suppose you also think that if she never has Sex Ed in school, she'll never figure out that Tab A fits in Slot B?

As the parent of almost-21 and 17-year-old daughters, I have to say that you are MUCH better off teaching them how not to be idiots than you will be trying to limit their exposure at every turn.

Both of my girls have FB, personal email, and their own cell phones. I'm friends with one but not the other. I don't know their passwords. They have for several years at least. They're both smart enough - and been informed enough, by us - to know what is appropriate or not.

You have to teach them right from stupid, and then you have to trust them. There is no other way they are going to grow into responsible, self-reliant human beings.

That's how we did things. It worked.

Appleseed wrote:

Jerry wrote: I didn't realize FB had an age limit? I doubt my step-sister or her shiny happy person husband care in any case. (I do believe she's around 11 and has had one at least a year.)

Did I read this right? Your step-sister is 11 years old and has a husband?

Chat rooms can be questionable at times.

My daughter got an account for her 13th Birthday. I have to remain her friend, and have her password. She can hide posts from me, but she knows that I can go in and look around if need be, or shut her down if I want. So far, it has been innocent stuff and I have not been concerned. As she gets older, who knows? All you can do is raise them right and hope.

Toyman01 wrote: My 13yo son has an account on the condition that his mother has full access to it. For the most part, he doesn't use it much. Maybe checks in once a week.

yeah, but he's probably on his "real" account every day...

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: My 13yr old (just turned) asked for one for his birthday. His mother agreed and only under the condition that she has his password and is on his "friend" list. I do not have an account, voiced my dissent and said that I was not to be involved. Two days later my wife took his account away because he "liked" something inappropriate for a 13yr old. For the record... it wasn't anything really bad - he rides a public school bus every day and I was 13 once... I know what he and his friends are talking about. My wife just cannot handle that sort of knowledge. I said "I told you" about 400x today because that is the sort of person I am.

GPS wins again. The funny part is that parents think they can somehow control something that people have unlimited access to. Hell, at 14 I was running networks and making servers work with xbconnect and gamespy arcade before xbox live. And I ain't even that smart and my parents have basic computer skills!

Don't tell my parents that the porn videos wmp would randomly play had anything to do with me though (again, @ 14) lol. they just fought between each other about it...