How Seniors Can Enjoy Social Media Without the Risks?

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Different social media channels have become an essential tool to stay in touch with each other in today’s highly digitalized world. Even senior citizens utilize them for friendship, fun and entertainment, learning opportunities, and creating community bonds. But we must not forget that social media has become a place for fraud, misinformation, scams, and privacy threats. So how can older adults enjoy social media safely and confidently? Let’s discuss some useful recommendations. 

Social Media For Seniors: Helpful Tips

social media for seniors

Choose The Best Social Media For Seniors

There are multiple social media channels. They offer different experiences to users. Senior citizens must choose easy, safe, and familiar social media channels.  For example, Facebook is ideal for staying in touch with family members, seeing updates from friends, and building communities. WhatsApp is ideal for simple messaging, audio, and video calls. Instagram is a perfect source of entertainment and visual content. Choose the best social media for adults as per your choices. 

Create A Strong And Safe Profile

You must always keep in mind that account safety is the first step towards using social media channels safely. So, create a profile for your senior citizen and share only the required information necessary for registration. Use a strong password and enable two-factor authentication. Never share your login details with anyone, and use a secondary account recovery option. All these steps will prevent hackers from getting unauthorized access to their social media accounts. 

Make The Best Use Of Privacy Settings

It has been observed that most senior citizens who use social media platforms don’t know how to control who sees their photos, posts, and information. They must hide phone numbers and email addresses, don’t accept friend requests from unknown individuals, turn off location sharing, and make their profiles visible to friends only. All these privacy settings ensure that their personal information is safe. 

Aware Of Social Media Fraud

Professional scammers often target senior citizens on social media channels.  They become victims of romance scams, fake bank alerts, phishing links, etc. While using social media platforms, senior citizens must exercise some precautions-

  • They should not click on suspicious links.
  • They should not share their personal information with strangers on social media platforms.
  • They should ignore messages asking for financial help. 
  • They must report suspicious activities immediately to avoid account suspension or any kind of losses.

Awareness is the best protection against any type of problem on social media platforms. 

Limit The Time Of Social Media Use

Spending too much time on different social media channels can lead to emotional stress, loss of sleep, eye strain, etc. Therefore, senior citizens must use social media only for one or two hours a day. They must avoid late-night scrolling and take breaks every 30 minutes. All these activities will help them use social media channels adequately and maintain digital discipline. 

At Star Capital, we provide personalized care to all senior citizens after analyzing their health and overall condition, and help them lead high quality life. We constantly monitor their social media use and prevent them from doing anything weird. In daily routines, we have included social media browsing for a limited time period. It allows them to connect with like-minded individuals on their favourite social media channel, share thoughts, and stay happy.

Avoid Sharing Misinformation 

Senior citizens are more prone to sharing content emotionally without verifying it. It makes them an easy target for fake information. They must check the source of the news and verify it from reliable sources. It will make them responsible social media users.

Connect With Family Members Through Social Media 

Not all senior citizens live with their relatives, friends, and family members. Many live alone. They can use social media to connect with their loved ones, stay up to date about the latest events in the family, and manage their life accordingly. It also improves their mental and emotional well-being. 

Follow Pages That Promote Positivity

We must always keep in mind that social media can be a powerful tool for happiness if senior citizens follow the right content. They must subscribe to spiritual pages, motivational speakers, senior communities, etc. It will improve their knowledge and help them maintain positive mental health. 

Ask For Help Whenever  Needed

If senior citizens face confusion or trouble while using social media channels, they must seek help from children, grandchildren, or any person available nearby. At Star Capital,  our staff is always happy to help senior citizens use social media platforms safely and supervise their online behaviour.

Conclusion

Social media is a useful tool for senior citizens if they use it correctly. They can get learning opportunities, entertainment, and make new friends using their favourite social media channels. By following the above-mentioned social media strategies for senior living, they can easily enjoy all the benefits of social media and keep themselves away from any risks. Don’t hesitate to enroll your senior citizen in Star Capital. We provide them personalized care. It helps them to lead a high-quality life and be happy. Contact us for more information.

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