As technology grows in our society and becomes increasingly important in our daily lives, many new applications and developments have been made that introduce a new standard of living. Some new social media apps, such as Ask.fm and Yik Yak, provide access to anonymous message boards and discussion sites which ultimately harm us more than help.

When we post on other sites such as Facebook or Instagram, our name goes along with what we are saying, and our words are branded as our own. The danger in apps such as Yik Yak and Ask.fm can be found in the anonymous nature of the content being left. With the barrier of either a phone or computer screen between us and another person, it becomes much easier to voice our true opinions, and we become even more tempted to do so when our words remain nameless. Without the consequences of our words being held against us, there is a greater chance that hurtful and degrading comments may be left on these sites, which increases bullying and harassment at little to no cost to the offender.
Another issue that may arise from the utilization of these apps is the impact that they may hold on a child’s future. Without the concern of responsibility for their actions due to the anonymity of the app, children may abuse these sites and use them in disrespectful and hateful ways. Although apps claim to be anonymous and untraceable, many apps do actually have databases that store all the content that is submitted, and those submissions may later be linked back to the child who posted it. This poses a threat not only to the student when being accepted into colleges in the future, but future employers may also have access to the submissions onto these sites. The choices made by kids now, even though they may seem inconsequential at the time, may actually have haunting effects in the future.