College students’ lives can be changed — and even destroyed — in the time it takes to click a mouse. Take a look at these real-life examples of the harm digital technology can cause.

• Jessica Logan, an 18-year old graduate of Sycamore High School, aspired to study graphic design and planned to attend the University of Cincinnati. But she committed suicide after an ex-boyfriend shared nude photos of her with his friends.
• One Boston University grad student’s illegal downloading habits landed him in court where the jury found him guilty of copyright infringement. He was hit with a whopping $675,000 penalty.
• One student’s tweet changed Texas Tech’s rules about how the football team can — and can’t — use social networking sites.

Today’s educators face a new and growing challenge: teaching constantly “plugged in” students to be responsible with digital technology.

College-aged students are particularly vulnerable, due to the newfound sense of freedom most students feel on campus.

Cyberbullying and sexting get the lion’s share of the attention. But true digital responsibility encompasses so much more, says Richard Guerry, executive director of The Institute for Responsible Online and Cell-Phone Communications (IROC2).

IROC2 is a non-profit organization, and no school is ever denied access to the program. Its Speaker’s Bureau travels to schools and universities around the country to teach students about using technology responsibly.

IROC2 promotes a 21st-century mindset, which includes understanding two essential elements:

1. Digital technology is public. Students often argue: My profile is private/I have a password. They may think they’re only posting comments and sending emoticons to their top eight friends. But in reality, cyber-criminals lurk in deeper and darker Web sites. These people hack into private profiles, infect computers with spyware and friend unsuspecting victims. One shady outfit actually advertises that it hacks into Facebook accounts for just $100 a pop.
2. Digital technology is permanent. Some students say: But I can delete it whenever I want. In reality, no, they can’t! YouTube and PhotoBucket provide great examples. After content is uploaded,  site visitors can download photos and videos to their own computers and post them onto their own sites — or even forward them to their friends. Once content is out there, it’s out there forever. Students can’t possibly know who’s downloading their content or what they’re doing with it.

The IROC2 program teaches students more digital danger zones, including:

• how people can pull up photos (even the deleted ones) from cell phones and digital cameras
• how to spot clues that give away fraudulent pages posing as legitimate Facebook and MySpace accounts
• the dangers of Facebook Apps — and who’s behind most of those quizzes, and
• what to leave out of status updates — and safer alternatives to include.

For more info about IROC2, visit their Web site.

Do you think students are naive when it comes to using digital technology? Tell us what you think in the comments section below.

Tags: Boston University, facebook, Institute of Responsible Online and Cell-Phone Communication, IROC2, PhotoBucket, Texas Tech, University of Cincinnati, Web, YouTube