When it comes to social media, it is pretty obvious that most of what goes on is a free for all. In a lot of ways, the online world seems a lot like the Wild West. When we think of the kind of illegal activity that usually gets punished online, our thoughts generally go to things like identity theft, illegal downloading, and other similar crimes. But what a lot of people don’t realize is that those are not the only illegal things going on.
When it comes to the internet, there are far more rules broken every day than the law can effectively keep up with… and some of these laws are broken by people who have no idea that they are doing anything wrong!
Social media marketing has become a very popular way to advertise products and/or services online. In fact, there are a significant number of people who earn their living by marketing products on sites like Facebook, Google+, Linkedin, and Pinterest.
Now, I for one will say that there is nothing inherently wrong with some good, old-fashioned marketing. In fact, it is a legitimate, honest way to earn a living. But a lot of social media marketers do not realize that some of their practices might, in fact, be illegal!
What is and isn’t Illegal with social media?
So, what exactly is legal when it comes to social media? What can you do and what can’t you do? Well, when it comes to marketing, there are a lot of gray areas, but there is also a healthy amount of black and white. To be honest, a lot of it has to do with common sense. Could the content that you are posting belong to someone else? Could you hurt someone by posting what you are posting? Could you be taking money away from someone wrongfully by linking to the sites that you are linking to?
There are actually a number of practices that could get you into trouble over social media, including (but not limited to)…
- Terminating employees for what they post on social media if distinct guidelines are not spelled out in your policy
- Posting trademarked or copyrighted photos or content without permission
- Endorsing products for money without disclosing the fact that you are a paid marketer
Just as an example, a lot of people do not realize that the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) has rules about marketing online, and that these rules apply to social media marketing as well as they do to other, more traditional mediums. One of the biggest issues right now is the advent of ‘stealth marketing’, a process in which marketers promote products, brands, or companies without disclosing the fact that they are, in fact, a paid advertiser.
This might seem like a really strange rule; but if you think about it, it really does make a lot of sense. When you are paid to advertise a product and then you get on Facebook and tell all of your friends to ‘try out’ this new product that you have been using, you are depriving the consumer of information that they have a right to know.
According to the FTC, the consumer has a right to know whether you are a paid endorser or not. Of course, in some cases it is obvious. If you own a business and you promote your business’s products on Facebook, then it is pretty obvious that you are doing so to earn a profit. It is when you try to act like a non-paid consumer that problems can come up… which is why you are supposed to inform consumers that you are a paid advertiser if you market products for money in a way that is not obviously commercial.
The consequences
Will breaking laws on Facebook get you into serious trouble? Well, first let me just take a minute to state the obvious… every day, there are trademark infringements, stealth marketing antics, and tons of other ‘unscrupulous’ activities going on that are never tracked, recorded, or punished. Very seldom are criminals ever convicted of things like ‘trademark/copyright infringement’ for posting copyrighted photos on their blog; or of ‘stealth marketing’ for forum-posting to advertise a company for money online when they are obviously pretending to be an unpaid customer.
But, these things are happening more and more… and if you are not careful, lawless antics on social media sites can definitely get you into trouble. How much trouble you will actually get into, however, is completely impossible to predict. You could get booted from the site, but you could also get fined as much as $150,000 for posting protected photos on your blog or website without permission. It really depends on what you are doing. Criminal lawyers are getting busier and busier with cases like this, so it is always good to err on the safe side and to check the rules before posting content or marketing online.
Author Bio:
Josh Sigafus is a freelance content writer, songwriter, and aspiring novelist. He lives in a small town located in the Midwestern United States, and enjoys spending time with his friends and family when he is not working. Josh often utilizes resources such as www.bgs.com when he is researching for articles, such as this article about safe online marketing and social media practices.
