Page 24 - The Villager April 2021

Life Talk

Nearby’ feature which allows you to see nearby groups
(without joining) and with the most horrific pornography.”
according to gadgetsnow.com, hackers can use this feature
to extract your exact location. If there is a stalker out there,
your child could be at risk!
a report compiled by arstechnia states: ”telegram lets users
create local groups within a geographical area. Scammers
often spoof their location to cash in on such groups and then
peddle fake bitcoin investments, hacking tools, stolen security
numbers and lure their victims into other scams.”

teleGram Sexually suggestive Stickers
but, there’s more! I have seen for myself the sticker options
freely available on the app. they are entirely inappropriate for
– the new younger children, being sexually suggestive and, honestly,
leaving nothing to the imagination. once seen, they cannot be
porn hub? unseen. Personally, I wouldn’t want those images imbedded in
my child’s mind.

What to do
by NIColeeN DavIeS, DIreCtor lIFe talK ForUm If your child had downloaded telegram and you are still
comfortable for him/her to continue to use the app then:
e are all aware of the recent issues around
whatapps’ mandatory new privacy policy terms, • Ensure their location is turned off. BUT, turning off location
Wwhich left people nervous and scrambling to move settings is not enough as they can easily be turned back
away to other chat platforms such as Signal and telegram. the on. emma suggests . . . “you need to make sure that there
main issues at play are a lack of trust in Facebook and the fact is a parental control function that either stops them from
that if users didn’t accept the new terms, they would no longer turning the location on and off – or if you have decided
be able to use the whatsapp service. they should not be on telegram, to ban them from the
Facebook, the owner of whatsapp, has a poor track record platform.”
when it comes to managing data and thereby consumer • To access the location setting, follow the prompts below:
interests. the intention of the new terms was to allow whatsapp • go into "settings" on your phone;
to generate revenue by allowing commercial exchanges on • go to "privacy and location";
the app and allowing users to message businesses. the terms • in "permission manager", you are allowed to turn off your
would not affect personal conversations which would remain location settings for each app.
encrypted. they also claim that it would not expand their • Google parental control apps. A suggested article is:
ability to share data with Facebook. https://www.tomsguide.com/us/best-parental-control-
but the consumer backlash was immense with millions of apps,review-2258.html
people downloading other apps. on 18 January 2021, there • Talk to your children and educate them about the potential
were 1,5 million people who downloaded Signal – they dangers, and, more specifically the issue of people not
boasted 17,8 million downloads in the first week of January. known to them who may try to interact with them.
telegram had 15,7 million downloads in the same period. • Remind your children that the best protection they have is
themselves. they can keep themselves safe.
• Periodically, check their phones to ensure that they are
Telegram – ‘People Nearby’ feature warning
with the focus on new platforms, issues came to light about continuing to be safe.
the potential exposure of children to inappropriate material. Other sources
https://www.moneyweb.co.za/news/tech/whatsapp-retreats-after-user-
emma Sadlier, a social media law specialist, has been warning backlash-delays-mandatory-new-terms/
https://www.inc.com/jason-aten/how-signal-became-most-popular-app-in-
parents of the telegram feature ‘People Nearby’, which can world-overnight-why-it-matters.html
easily expose young users to pornography. She posted on https://apnews.com/article/apple-inc-media-social-media-844c00e28ea7f7
3e6d1f5fa002f60f6a
twitter: “UrgeNt UrgeNt!!!... If your child has downloaded https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/sci-tech/2021-01-12-porn-exposure-
warning-with-telegram-location-setting/
telegram, please make absolutely sure the location is turned https://www.gadgetsnow.com/tech-news/security-problem-
found-in-telegram-app/articleshow/80183809.cms?utm_
off and that they cannot turn it back on. there is a ‘People source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

22 • Issue 4 2021 • The Villager