Have you ever come across an embarrassing picture of yourself that someone else posted online? If so, you may have laughed when you first saw it, but how do you think your mother would have responded? What about a future employer?

Universities across the country are reshaping their orientation programs for incoming freshmen to include the implications of online behavior.

This type of program is necessary for college students, but it should be implemented earlier as well.

By the time students enter college, they probably already have more than a couple years of online social networking under their belts. Because increasingly younger children participate in social networks, the repercussions of Internet posting should be taught much earlier than upon entering college.

As the Internet continues to evolve, so too do its users. Despite any user limitations — such as age — there will always be people who can manipulate the use of any social network.

In June, a 14-year-old and her mother sued MySpace.com for $30 million. The prosecutors claimed that the site did not protect minors from sexual predators.

If that 14-year-old had been taught previously about acceptable online behavior and safety, she would have been more aware of the consequences of the information she posted online.

It's clear as more cases of online predators assisted by these social networks arise that there need to be better educational programs focused on user safety.

Similar to programs used to educate children about drugs and alcohol, an online safety class should be taught to elementary and middle school students. At these younger ages, the idea of Internet safety and the risks associated with publishing personal information online would have a larger and more lasting impact.

Putting personal information online makes you accessible to a large audience. Even if you do your best to limit your online photo album so that only certain people can see it, your friends may not have taken that same precaution.

How many of you thought Facebook.com was only for college students? You may be surprised to find that faculty members, including your professors and residence hall directors, can also be members of the popular social network.

So the next time you post that picture of your beer pong championship, you might consider thinking about how your future employer will react.