Hidden Items on Devices, Discovered.
There are various reasons that one would want to hide content on their personal device. They can range from concealing top secret marketing plans for a business or protecting the secrets of a developing surprise party of a loved one to ensure the element of surprise on that special day.
Often times, as we have often seen, technology that assumably was intended for good purpose is used in negative ways. The development of the internet opened the world of information to everyone. Unfortunately, it also let loose the monster of pornography that has ruined so many lives. (I will discuss navigating the internet safely in a future post)
An unfortunate story has taken the media by storm the past couple of days about Canyon City High School in Colorado. It has been reported that several of these teen students were swapping naked photos with each other. There are reportedly hundreds of photos that are circulating among just this school. This is not the first time that a story like this has made the news but hopefully this post will help parents and friends prevent things like this more in the future.
Do you remember, or still have, books that were hollowed out so you could store precious things in them on a shelf in plain site? That is exactly how much of this content is hidden on personal devices. Like the book on a shelf, one may look at a child's or a friend's phone and not see anything alarming. Many of the apps that are used to hide content are disguised as a calculator or even an app folder. They even function in a way appropriate to the facade. There are a few ways to find out what is real and what is a front though.
First of all, don't be affraid to check what apps have been purchased/downloaded on the account. Just looking at the list of purchased apps will tell you a lot. Many of these apps have names like: HiCalculator-private album and secret photo protector and secret folders. It's pretty obvious what the purpose is in the name. Plus, let's be honest, who really needs more than one calculator app? Just saying...
Take time to familiarize yourself with the apps that are available out there. The app stores make it pretty easy. When you start typing in "hide" the first search suggestion is "hide pictures and videos." You don't even have to try to find these apps. Rather than listing a long list here, I encourage you to search the app stores to see what the results are. If any of the results are already on the device, is should show you there that it has been previously downloaded.
It may also be a good idea to require your children to come to you to download any apps on the phone. Make sure that you are the one that puts in the password, (out of their prying eyes) and have a conversation with them about the app. You can probably tell pretty quickly if it's really a necessary app. NOTE: There is an option to require a password for EVERY download. TURN THAT OPTION ON! The default is for the device to remember a password for 15 minutes after the first downloaded app to make it more convenient when downloading multiple apps. That is a common way that kids are downloading apps without parents knowledge. The conversation goes something like this: "Hey Parent, can I download this game? It's really fun." To which the Parent replies "What is the game?", "It's a game that helps me learn about history." Parent then looks at the app and feels good about it so they enter the password and hands the device back to their child while the app is downloading. Child then dissapears and downloads as monay apps as possible during the open window. Again, make sure the device requires a password with EVERY download. Also, make sure that the option to remember the password for ALL free apps is turned off. This is a convenience that most children don't need.
When a questionable app is on a device, you can find it by looking at the apps or by using the search feature of the phone. Search for words like vault, secret, hide, and protect. If you familiarize yourself with the available apps as mentioned above they should be easy to find. If you find one have the owner of that device log in to let you see what is hidden behind the calculator.
Beware of this trick though! Remember the hollow book? Imagine that the book is only hollow on the bottom half of the book when you open up the front cover. What do you think that means? Try opening up the back cover of the book. When you do, there will probably be another hollowed out section with the real hidden items. Many of the apps have two doors these days. The person logging in has two passcodes. The first one is the one that they will show you. Inside of that first door will be harmless photos and items that will make you think that there are no problems. Behind the door of the second passcode is where the real hidden items are. Be sure to have both doors opened for inspection.
I hope those reading this post will realize some of the consequences that can happen for exchanging inappropriate content as well as having that content in your possesion. The students that were caught in Colorado as reported in the news recently could be facing child pornography charges and the consequences that go with that. Being on a sex offenders list for your entire life for swapping naked photos because it's "cool" or "the thing to do" doesn't seem worth it.
The other thing to consider is the people out there that are being coerced, forced, or bullied into sexting or having naked photos taken of them by their peers. If this post is reaching any of you, PLEASE seek help from your parents, school leaders, or the authorities. This is a serious matter and should not be taken lightly.
I have told many people that technology consumes a lot of my time. I love it! I can't get enough of it! I am always reading articles to learn new things and keeping track of the latest trends and upcoming products. That being said, it is nearly impossible to keep up with all aspects of the ways that technology is being used. The above mentioned suggestions are SOME ways that can help in preventing harmful things but I am a firm believer that taking a personal interest in someone goes a long way when it comes to making sure that all is well. I would hope that we all take precautions in relation to personal devices in our homes but also make an effort to strengthen the bond that comes when we put those devices away.