Are The Children Really Missing Or Is It Something Else.

Social media is a great aid in finding missing children and adults, but it can also be very dangerous for the person who has been reported missing. Take for instance a report that was in Facebook.  The story on Facebook was very touching. A father published a photo of his missing children and asked for help finding them. And thousands helped sharing the post and finally one person recognized the children and let him know where to find them. What the father did not say was the missing woman was living under protection and with a new identity after leaving the man. Now he found out where she was. She was forced to move again to a women’s shelter. True story. They may actually be hiding for their own safety. That is the main problem of many missing children post, we don’t know the full story. We only know what we can see on the post itself and anyone can publish a post on Facebook. Here are some other examples. Birth parents may try and find their adopted offspring through social media, and posting appeals to locate them is an effective way of doing that. However this causes legal related issues, since reunions between birth parents and adopted children may  have to undergo legal processes where both parties and the adoptive parents would need to come to an agreement. Facebook post bypasses that. There are also farming sites. These people gather photo’s of children without the families permission and try to get likes or followers, with some getting paid for the number of likes or shares. It can be very tempting to say “I’ll share just in case it’s true,” thinking that it’s better to share even it turns out to be a hoax. But you could be putting someones life in danger. Police departments are recommending that you always check the source of the photo you’re sharing. See if the post comes from a confirmed police source, or comes with a link to a reputable newspaper or media outlet. If you come across a missing child post that lacks any information, link or source, than take a closer look.  If you can’t find any information from local media or police then you may very well be looking at something you really shouldn’t be sharing. Rather than spreading the information, you can also contact the police to see if it’s a legitimate request or confirm with them. This article is not to discourage Facebook users from sharing legitimate appeals. It can and does provide a way to get the word out and enlist the help of hundreds or thousands. Just be careful. You could be doing more harm than good. For more on the featured picture, click here.