Teen love can be all consuming. And don’t say you don’t remember – we’ve all gone through it!
The world stops. Nothing else matters (particularly not school work). Love takes over… You are Sitting On Top Of The World (to use Delta Goodrem’s expression!)
When you are in love (and not particularly worldly) you may just assume that sharing everything is fine – whether it is saliva, chairs or passwords!! In fact – you may even consider it to be the ultimate sign of your love!!!
Well, I am here to intervene. Sharing private data is NOT OK and as parents, we have to make sure our teens understand this CLEARLY. Sharing information increases the likelihood of their personal data being leaked and their identity being stolen. As most of us know, teen love doesn’t always last forever. Painful breakups can often result in hurt feelings and less than ideal behaviour!
A recent McAfee survey entitled, Love, Relationship and Technology, showed that almost 50% of Aussie share passwords with their partners and 67% share their bank account details. Unfortunately, 10% of Aussies have had their personal content leaked without their permission and 5% of ex-partners have threatened to expose risqué photos of their ex loves. Some very good reasons NOT to share!!
So, if your teens are ‘in lurve’ and maybe tempted to share a little too much, please tell them that it is NOT OK. Encourage them to use a password or pin on their phones (to avoid anyone accessing their private content) and to NEVER share passwords!! It may just prevent a whole lot of heartache!
Till next time,
Alex xx