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Social Media Safety

Thursday, July 30, 2015 - 1:43 PM

Using Social Media to promote your club is a great way to utilise new digital communication technologies, but clubs need to be sure they, and their members, are using it appropriately. 

Staying safe online and especially on social media, has never been a bigger concern for individuals and organisations alike – including local football clubs.

Risks

While social media provides excellent tools for helping your club engage with members and the public, it can also present a number of risks such as:

  • Cyber bullying- through posts which are upsetting to people and often inaccurate
  • Causing offence to individuals, or other clubs and organisations
  • Exposure to inappropriate content, or nasty comments and pictures

WA Football Social Media Policy

The Internet and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) devices / equipment bring great benefits to all users and can contribute to the effective operation of the organisation and its members through the ability to disseminate information, the ability to promote the sport and clubs and to provide members with the ability to connect with others within the organisation.

The West Australian Football Commission (WAFC) has an obligation to ensure that affiliated clubs maintain a safe physical and emotional environment for its members and this includes cyber safety and the safe and responsible use of ICT.

Individual members also have a responsibility to use ICT in a safe and responsible way. Junior

Football stakeholders including clubs and its members will create a cybersafe environment by:  

  • Using the organisation’s name, motto, crest and/or logo only in an appropriate way in line with the organisation’s guidelines,
  • Using the organisation or affiliated club’s websites to provide information about competitions, committees, policies, rules, social events or other important sport related issues,
  • Using SMS and/or email by officials, managers, coaches etc to communicate organisation business and organisation sanctioned social events (via parents in the case of juniors),
  • Using the organisation or affiliated clubs social network pages to promote positive organisation news and events(with permission obtained from featured individual(s) and via parents for juniors),
  • Ensuring content of posts or electronic communication doesn’t breach any organisation policies or codes of conduct,
  • Ensuring content of posts or electronic communication doesn’t breach state or commonwealth law. This includes not engaging in ‘sexting’ where a member sends or is in possession of an inappropriate sexualised image of a person under the age of 18 years – this is a criminal offence in WA and the Police will be informed immediately,
  • Not engaging in cyber bullying, including but not limited to:
    • harassing, teasing, intimidating or threatening another person via electronic means,
    • sending or posting inappropriate digital pictures or images, email / instant / phone / text messages, or website postings (including social network sites ie Facebook or blogs) and is irrespective of whether the page could be viewed by the wider public or not,
  • Members will remain responsible for and be vigilant of the content and security of their individual accounts such as email, social networking (ie Facebook), micro blogging (ie Twitter), video sharing (ie YouTube), picture sharing (ie Instagram) and mobile phones.

The West Australian Football Commission and Junior Clubs take any breaches of the policy seriously. Any person (including, but not limited to, players, officials, coaches, members, umpires, spectators, and parents) or clubs who breached this policy can be called before the controlling bodies tribunal under By-Law 45.7 and can be charged for ‘misconduct of a serious nature’.

DEFINITIONS: ‘The organisation’ refers to the West Australian Football Commission and to Junior Football Clubs.

‘Members’ refers to administrators, clubs, club members, coaches, officials, registered players, sponsors, support personnel, spectators, parents and umpires.