With the ever-increasing spread of social networks, individuals must navigate through potential threats, such as fake accounts, every day. Unfortunately, fake accounts could lead to awful situations for the user, from cyberbullying to exposition to violent and hateful imagery. Therefore, the implementation of safety regulations is required to protect people’s privacy and social well-being.
One of the most critical aspects of using social media is the high risk of encountering fake accounts. The problem with such accounts is that they often end up being largely dangerous, especially for aspects concerning online hate speech and the consequent plague of cyberbullying, but also in case they are active profiles sharing illegal posts or information related to abuse, pornography, guns and violence. The latest surveys have shown that, in particular, inappropriate images of children are circulating at a threatening rate in recent years, very alarming news that calls for an immediate solution.
In order to discredit and limit similar online threats, I am of the idea that there should be specific trained figures that act as regulators. Their job would be checking new accounts as soon as one is created and, if anything looked suspicious, the account would be temporarily banned until the user’s identity is properly verified (maybe, through personal ID submission). This process may seem overly complicated, however, if it showed effectiveness in restricting the possible threat of fake accounts, it would still be worth the try. Imagine how many teenagers could be saved from possible trauma if their cyberbully was stopped at the first hateful comment found by those regulators.
In conclusion, there is no doubt that the problem of fake accounts when it comes to safe employment of social media is one that requires the utmost attention. In this sense, the implementation of trained people who would fulfill the task of controlling the rightfulness of every account could help protect other users’ online security and well-being.