Parents' Guide to Tellonym

With online anonymity increasing the likelihood of callousness and cruelty, anonymous messaging is a questionable concept at best, especially for kids. Though there's some potential for fun in guessing who's messaging you -- the app store's tagline reads "See who likes you" -- there's just as much potential for finding out who doesn't. Users in app store reviews report being harassed repeatedly, told they're ugly, and that they should "kill themselves." The developers admit Tellonym allows anonymous, unregistered users to send messages, and that while these messages can be policed and/or blocked, that's generally only after the damage has been done. It's all too easy to send insulting or threatening messages to other people or make them feel unwanted. And though Tellonym claims its simple text-based approach and in-house monitoring reduce the possibility of cyberbullying, the app's ability to link to more diverse social media apps like Snapchat and Twitter more or less cancel out that claim. With two million registered users and the promise of anonymity, Tellonym is an obvious temptation for shy kids and teens; unfortunately, the app's potential for encouraging meanness and clique-ishness make it the last kind of app kids should use.