---
title: "Teens, Social Networks and Safety Online: An Overview"
description: "Teens and parents are taking steps both technical and non-technical to protect themselves/teens online, including on social networking websites."
date: "2007-02-13"
authors:
  - name: "Amanda Lenhart"
    job_title: "Former Director of Teens and Technology Research at the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project"
    link: "https://www.pewresearch.org/staff/amanda-lenhart/"
url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2007/02/13/teens-social-networks-and-safety-online-an-overview/"
categories:
  - "Social Media"
  - "Teens & Tech"
  - "Teens & Youth"
tags:
  - "Safety"
  - "Social Networking"
  - "Teens"
---

# Teens, Social Networks and Safety Online: An Overview

How do teens protect themselves online? What do parents do to protect them? What are the implications for protecting teens from objectionable materials online in an age of user-generated content and convergence? What are social networks and how are teens really using them?