Apps That Can Put Your Child and Your Family at Risk

Nowadays everyone is exposed to technology 24/7, especially with Smartphones. There's a smartphone app for just about everything, but thousands of them have hidden dangers, especially for kids.

Your kids may be downloading apps that you think are innocent and just a simple way for them to keep in contact with friends, but unfortunately, this isn’t always the case. Any app can easily be manipulated by a predator or used as a means for cyberbullying. While not all inclusive, here is a list of the most dangerous apps that may be on your child’s phone.

ChatRoulette

ChatRoulette allows users to connect anonymously to other users all over the world. Communications are done with video, and without any security blocks or filters. The app basically allows strangers into your child’s bedroom, and your home.

Kik

Kik is an app that is very popular with tweens, despite the fact that the app says users must be 17 or older. It is an instant messaging service similar to texting but users have multiple options of talking with individuals, with groups and within a social networking environment.  Users can also use Kik to send photos and files which poses a significant risk of interaction with sexual predators. Even when interacting with friends or classmates, Kik creates an environment for bullying, harassment, sexting, and cyber-stalking, particularly when users are group messaging.

Snapchat

Snapchat is a picture-messaging app that gained notoriety because the pictures/videos automatically delete within 10 seconds after sharing them. In theory, you can send embarrassing or risqué pictures without being afraid someone will steal or distribute them. Unfortunately, it does not take much for the recipient to grab a screenshot of the image before it's deleted. Hackers have even been able to get their hands on “deleted” images that were stored by third-party servers.

Tinder

Tinder is a dating app for adults. Tinder allows a person to create a profile and see images of potential romantic matches in the immediate area. If two people like each other, they can have a conversation through the app and potentially "hook up." The only way to get on the app is to have a Facebook account with a birth date that indicates the user is 18 years old or over. Because there is no age verification, kids can set any birth date they wish.

Vine

Vine allows users to record and share six-second videos. The videos or “vines” as they are called play in an endless loop.  The videos are shared with other Vine users who you follow and can be shared on Facebook or Twitter. All profiles are public so once teens download the app, they have access to all kinds of videos—the good, the bad, and the sexually explicit. Kids have used Vine to post video challenges. These stunts where users attempt to outdo each other using fire or ingesting spices like cinnamon are dangerous.  The fire challenge is for those lacking a fear of flames engulfing their bodies. Participants usually stand in the shower, with it already running, and then pour alcohol or other flammable substances over their bodies. The cinnamon challenge can be extremely damaging to the participants lungs. The powder coating clogs the throat, and with little to no moisture left breathing can be constricted.

Whisper

Whisper an app built specifically for spreading rumors and secrets, lets users post pictures and text anonymously. Kids will go on and use it to spread rumors or something they heard about another classmate. Whisper shares the secrets based on geographic location, so users nearest to your child are the ones more likely to see the secret, including predators. This app is also a virtual playground for cyberbullying. While there is a warning that users must be 17 years old, users don't have to register, and there's no user profile to fill out.

Yik Yak

Yik Yak allows users to make anonymous posts that can be seen by other Yakkers in their vicinity.  The app is widely used by high school students, though it has been recently restricted from high school campuses.  Due to its anonymity, Yaks can be and are used for bullying, hate crimes, sexual content, and threats.  Although Yaks usually don’t include the names of victims, the attacks are often clear enough to know.

Then there is Poof, App Lock, and Keepsake.

These apps allow users to hide other apps on their Smartphone. The apps may look like a calculator, a notepad or some other app, but with a secret passcode, children are able to enter a virtual “vault” to hide and retrieve files that they do not want others to see.

Do you really know what apps are downloaded on your child’s phone? While many parents may talk to their kids about staying safe online, most will allow them to use Smartphones unsupervised. Without using controls such as built-in security, privacy features and search engine filters, children will almost certainly run into something that is inappropriate for their age.

Beyond deleting apps, what else can parents do? Find out what's on your child's phone. Educate yourself about the apps. Set permissions on your child’s phone could make all the difference. Parent control software such as PhoneSheriff and Secure Teen can be used to access and monitor their child's accounts including text messaging, everything remotely. It can also block a child’s access to dangerous apps. Perhaps most importantly, talk with your child about Smartphone safety. Communicate about what could happen and remind him/her that once on the Internet, always on the Internet!

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