Search engines and social media sites play a central role in building one’s reputation online, and many users are learning and refining their approach as they go — changing privacy settings on profiles, customizing who can see certain updates and deleting unwanted information about them that appears online. A report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project entitled “Reputation Management and Social Media” explores how people monitor and maintain their identity through search and social media.
When asked how much of the time they think they can trust social networking sites (SNS) like Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn, a surprising 28% of SNS users aged 18-29 say “never.” Note that the survey data for this report was compiled in the fall of 2009, well before the recent Facebook privacy kerfuffle — one might suspect that the level of distrust is presently higher.
Trust of the SNS that host personal content varies among age groups, with 19% of SNS users ages 30-49 and 14% of those ages 50-64 say they never trust the sites. The 18-29 group was are also more likely than older adults — by significant margins — to say they take steps to limit the amount of personal information available about them online, change from default privacy settings, delete unwanted comments and remove their name from photos.
The report provides exhaustive statistics on all aspects of reputation management. Major trends for all Internet users, not just those on SNS, indicating growth in activities related to online reputation management including:
57% of adult Internet users now use search engines to find information about themselves online, up from 47% in 2006.
Whether they are actively trying to get recognized or fly under the radar, most Internet users report some level of “privacy through obscurity.” While most report there is information about them online that may take some digging to find, 35% say their queries do not yield any relevant results.
46% of Internet users search online to find information about people from their past, up from 36% in 2006. Likewise, 38%% have sought information about their friends, up from 26% in 2006. And half of online adults (48%) agree that getting to know new people now is easier and more meaningful because you can learn things online about the people you meet.
46% of online adults have created their own profile on a social networking site, up from just 20% in 2006.
27% of employed Internet users now work for an employer that has policies about how they present themselves online — such as what they can post on blogs and websites or what information they can share about themselves. That compares to 22% in 2006.
31% of employed Internet users have searched online for information about co-workers, professional colleagues or business competitors, up from 23% in 2006.
16% of all Internet users have looked online for more information about someone they were dating or in a relationship with, up from 9% in 2006. Among those who use online dating sites, 34% go online to check up on their dates.
Social networking users are especially attuned to the intricacies of online reputation management. Two-thirds now say that they have changed the privacy settings for their profile to restrict what they share with others online. Most have also chosen to prune certain friends from their networks when they become too large or contacts fall out of favor, and many actively “revise” the information that others post about them.
Marketers who rely on personal data mined from the Internet need to account for the self-manipulation, identity confusion and other-party modification of that data.
Reputation management is a moving target
While more Americans are keeping tabs on their online reputations through search and social media, it is nearly impossible to measure the full range of influence that information has on their everyday interactions. The information we voluntarily share about ourselves online is only one element of our digital footprint; the details that others share about us are much less predictable and arguably require even greater vigilance to manage.
When search engines alter the way they deliver search results and social media sites make successive revisions to privacy settings and policies, even the most attentive reputation managers may find it difficult to keep up with all of the changes. The fact that Americans overwhelmingly feel as though it is not fair to judge people based on the information you find about them online may be a response to these uncertain conditions.
By the same token, there are many positive effects associated with a certain level of visibility online. Employees are building professional reputations online and collaborating with colleagues through social media sites. Those who are seeking romantic partners use online tools to learn more about their prospective dates. These phenomena is facilitated by some amount of information disclosure, and users are increasingly forced to anticipate all of these potential audiences when making decisions about the information they share in public and semi-public spaces online.
