I read an article the other day that explained that for most small businesses there is a lot of fear around social media. A lot of the concern has more to do with potential security issues that can occur. Certainly, with the internet, regardless of whether it's web 2.0 or not, there is always some concern about security, file sharing, downloads, and who knows what else.
Certainly having a social media policy is a step in the right direction. A policy can provide guidelines on what employees can or can't do, as well as explain why there are security risks, but companies also need to educate their employees about social media and the specific security risks that may occur.
Education about those risks can help employees understand what how social media use on company computer can actually hurt the company and also help them recognize where a potential security breach could come from. Additionally such education should also focus on explaining how sharing information on social media sites can create issues, especially if the information is proprietary.
Social media policies are useful, but education provides extra knowledge that is needed to help employees understand why the policies are in place. It's time for companies to start investing in training on social media in terms of security and also the danger of sharing proprietary information. Being proactive with such training can help employees understand how to use social media during work times, and more importantly why not to and when not to.