Wellness & Safety — News & Popular Guides
Parent’s Guide to Roblox
Roblox is a social gaming platform with a robust set of parental controls.
Ask Trish: U.S. Surgeon General’s Social Media Advisory
What you should know about this week’s report on social media and youth from the U.S. Surgeon General and why it’s a big deal.
Meta Opens Horizon Worlds Metaverse App to Teens
A Meta exec explains social VR app Horizon Worlds and how teens and everyone can use it safely.
Ask Trish: Reclaiming Our Humanity on Social Media
Hey Trish, sometimes social media can feel so removed from our genuine, lived experiences humans. How can we be more human online?
Up Too Late on Screens? Here’s How to Start the Conversation.
Advice to parents hoping to help their teens develop healthy screen habits.
More Recommendations
Ask Trish: Stressing About Social Media
I’m always so stressed about social media, like who’s viewing my stories, how my pictures look, and if I “measure up” to everyone else. How do I let go?
Quick Guide to Online Safety for Seniors
A 2018 Pew Research Center survey found that 66% of Americans over 65 were internet users. That number is getting bigger all the time, especially since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Digital Wellness is Cognitive Wellness
We actually have the power to improve our brain’s ability to acquire, understand, and apply information. But sometimes our screen use can get in the way.
Social Media Can Contribute to Despair about War but also Provide Relief
Like many people, I’ve spent a lot of time in front of my phone, computer and TV, focused on the war in Ukraine. On some TV news programs, it’s literally the only subject covered, sometimes in minute detail.
Video: TikTok’s Director of Creator Community
ConnectSafely CEO Larry Magid and Youth Advisor Trisha Prabhu spoke with Kudzi Chikumbu, TikTok’s Director of Creator Community, about the “secret sauce” for TikTok success.
Safer Internet Day: Programs for Home & School
We’re particularly proud of the experts and influencers we’ve lined up for this year’s program. Videos and other resources for families and schools are free and available now.
Ask Trish: Making Digital Resolutions
Me, thinking to myself earlier this week: “What’s the one thing I want to leave the Ask Trish community with in 2021?”
Generosity is Great, But Be Cautious When Giving to Charity
“Giving Tuesday,” which is now behind us, is really the start of the end-of-the-year holiday giving period. Unfortunately, this season of generosity also brings out online scammers.
Ask Trish: Social Media and Mental Health
Dear Trish: Maybe it’s just me but I just feel really bad about myself when I’m on social media. Like literally everyone seems to be living their best life and it reminds me how much is wrong with mine. How can I feel better?
ReThink Founder on How App Promotes Kindness & Decency
Rethink founder Trisha Prabhu is on a mission to help cultivate the next generation of responsible digital citizens.
Parent’s Guide to Tech for Tots
Teaching even our youngest children how to use devices and interact with digital content in a healthy way has become an important part of parenting.
How Smart Watches Monitor Your Health
So, now that I have all this health technology on my wrist and my phone, there’s only more thing I need to do and that’s to relax and lower my anxiety which, ironically, means spending more time enjoying life and less time looking at the data from the watch I’m wearing.
Tips to Help Stop Cyberbullying
Guidance for parents and young people on cyberbullying, including advice for ending (or preventing) the cycle of...
Facebook’s Messenger & Instagram’s Disappearing Act
Snapchat may have pioneered disappearing posts in social media, but Facebook is adding a disappearing act to...
More Recommendations
Survey Shows Adults Lack Trust in Social Media
It’s been obvious for awhile that we’re starting to experience a tech backlash, with an increasing number of people expressing skepticism over whether our devices and social media are doing us harm. Some of this skepticism can be healthy when, for example, it leads to people tightening up their privacy settings or putting down their phones and stepping away from their computers for quality time with friends and family. But, as a couple of recent surveys have found, it’s also starting to cause people to think more about regulating technology companies.
The Good and Bad of Location Sharing
Two recent news stories about cell phone location services recently caught my eye. One was a positive development and the other quite negative, until it was at least partially fixed.
New iOS Lets Users Set Limits for Kids and Adults
By Larry Magid As the founder of SafeKids.com and co-founder of ConnectSafely.org, I’ve written volumes about parental...
Facebook Slips, Snapchat Grows Among Teens — Nearly Half Online “Almost Constantly”
A new survey from Pew Research found that Snapchat is now the social media app that teens use most often, followed closely by YouTube.
Facebook is Cleaning Up Inappropriate Content But You Still Need to be Vigilant
by Larry Magid I’m about to report on some interesting numbers from Facebook regarding inappropriate material it...
Tips for Smart Cellphone Use
Some 95% of Americans own cellphones of some kind, according to Pew Research Center - among 18- to 29-year-olds, the...
How to Use Privacy Tools for Popular Services and Apps
After School "Anonymous" app After School does not have typical privacy settings because users do not have a profile...
FAQ on 'Sexting' and 'Sextortion'
One in seven teens report that they are sending sexts, and one in four are receiving sexts, according to a study that appeared in JAMA Pediatrics.
Stop Thinking About Screen Time
Few things stoke anxiety and confusion among parents like the topic of screen time. But experts are increasingly...