Youngsters told: Wise up with social networking

The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has warned that young people are putting themselves at risk with the information they post on social networking sites and blogs.

The details youngsters post online can be used by employers looking to find out more on potential recruits but also, more worryingly, they can be used by fraudsters.

According to ICO research, just over 70 per cent of young people said they would want to remove details from their social networking sites if prospective employers or universities were using them for research.

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The research - which surveyed 2,000 14-21 year olds - also found fraudsters could easily take advantage of the online behaviour of youngsters who post information commonly used in internet passwords.

The kind of information young people put on their social network pages include date of birth (60 per cent do this), job title and even home address (around 10 per cent of those surveyed).

Other information includes siblings' names (23 per cent), pet names (25 per cent of girls) and mother's maiden name (two per cent).

And on top of this, 80 per cent of girls aged 16-17 said they accept friend requests on their social network sites from people they don't know and more than 70 per cent surveyed are unconcerned that their personal profiles can be viewed by strangers.

The research also found a third of youngsters fail to read privacy policies on social networking sites.

But when asked how they feel about the way in which details are passed on to others for marketing purposes, 95 per cent of those surveyed said they were concerned.

David Smith, the deputy information commissioner, said the cost of posting these details could be high for a young person's future and so they need help to "wise up to every aspect of the internet age they're living in".

The ICO has issued guidance for young people on online information rights with tips such as thinking carefully before posting details that could leave a permanent electronic footprint.

Other tips include not revealing your real-life location, changing passwords frequently and considering that what your friends may find entertaining could be seen differently by university admissions tutors or prospective employers.