08/03/2011
By Reneé LaSalle
Charlotte - LaQwiesha Jackson is horrified by what she found online, “Just to know that somebody is putting pictures up and then everybody else is judging."
She's talking about the Smash or Pass pages on Facebook. People post a picture and others vote to smash (have sex) or pass based on the photograph.
Jackson says, “Majority of the ones that we've been going through are showing a lot of skin."
Many of the pictures appear to be of underage kids.
- Then people should report the pages and photos to the authorities.
Social media blogger Eric Frazier says, “That's a real serious danger."
Frazier's 17 year old daughter told him about the pages, “I've seen comments that are really cutting, nasty, mean."
He says beyond the emotional and developmental dangers these pages pose some big safety risks, “Somebody could have their privacy settings set more loosely than your child and that could let people in that your child would never on their own allow to watch what they're doing online."
There're more of these smash or pass pages than you might think. Some are exclusive to a particular school, others are community pages. One that Fox Charlotte found set an age limit of 15 to 21, another emphasized Teens Only.
Jackson's daughter Sydney and her friends say the online anonymity is scary.
14 year old Alexis Jackson says, “You don't know who's saying smash or pass and then they might try to get in contact with you."
Sydney chimes in, “You don't know who's looking because it's a page that everybody can see."
What's worse, they say often the pictures are posted by someone else.
Jackson's keeping an eye on her daughter's online moves. She's trying to keep her safe, “You're just giving out too much information and you don't know who's on the receiving end of it."
And wishes more parents knew about Smash or Pass.
Fraizer says you should have your child's passwords and talk openly with them about what they put on the internet.
