Are Cellphones Safe? Paola Castillo

Cellphones devices have made a big impact to our lives. As a cellphone owner I believe that a cellphone has affect our generation. People until this day have not been inform about all the side effects and what a cellphone can provoke. These popular mobile devices have affected our health, mentally, and physically.

Cellphones are the most popular devices that have affected people health’s. The exposure of a cellphone who has been used for many hours have a strong radiation that can cause behavior problems. People emotions change when they are in used of a mobile device, for example a person can spend many times using a cellphone either texting or a phone call but once they stop using and receiving enough radiation their behavior changes as feeling anxious, lost, or even angry. According to Carla Mooney author from PA, mention that cellphones radiation affects the brain development. Some researches of Yale School of Medicine made in 2012, decided to exposed two pregnant mice to cellphone radiation (30). Two different groups of pregnant mice placed in a cage, one group was placed with an active cellphone and the other with a deactivated cellphone. The activated cellphone exposed radiation to the pregnant mice. Once the offspring were born group one with radiation show that the offspring had a different behavior which had signs of hyperactivity, anxiety and memory problems. The other group showed normal behavior which concluded that cellphone radiation affected the offspring behavior (31).

Cellphones radiation is not safe it has affected our behavior and now is causing change in behavior. Since the radiation changes our self-stem imagine not being able to express your real emotions all because of the change in behavior problem. For example, I tend to use my phone for hours and once I disconnect myself I am a different person with other emotions. Once I use my cellphone I am happy and distracted but when I face reality I get into another mood which has been caused by the cellphone radiation.

People have the bad habit to text and drive not knowing how a quick cellphone distraction can caused dangerous accidents and death. Cellphones have been one of the most reasons why accidents are caused which it is against the law to drive and text while driving a vehicle. As a teen driver I have driven and text and have learned my lesson with bad experiences. Other people learned the hard way since mobile devices are not safe to trust, few people don’t make it back home due to them accidents, or others who have gone through change with physical appearance. Also, other cause of texting and driving can be the cause of a cellphone addiction. Teenagers are more likely to distract themselves more easily while texting and driving since they tend to stay in contact with friends and family’s knowing that they will get a respond to their conversation in a few minutes. Yes, people know that texting and driving is dangerous but why do we keep doing it?

A disproportionate amount of MVC’s related to distracted driving involve teenagers: although they compromise 6% of all drivers killed in MVC’s, teenagers account for 10% of all drivers determined to be distracted at the time of a crash and 11% of all drivers killed in crashes related to documented cellphone use (NHTSA,2015b). NHTSA reports that there were a total 45 teenage drivers and 161 drivers (aged 20-29) killed in cellphone distraction crashes in 2013. (80)

Mobile devices are not safe, and people should really stop texting and driving if they know how a simple distraction can immediately take your life or change it. Parents should be more aware and have a talk to teenagers about how serious can be texting and driving and what can be the cons due to the decision they decided to choose. Since teenagers are the ones more distracted while driving I think that they should be first mentally stable before getting their own vehicle.

Mobile users trust their devices with their personal information and accounts. Most of these apps that we download do share information without knowing about it. The browsing history you have search for in a website can collect few information about yourself from your cellphone . People believe that the most trustful device we can have is our cellphones, but it is one of the most dangerous devices that can easily get hacked by people. Example in case you lose your phone, and someone obtains your cellphone and personal information you will no longer have the chance to recover information that might has been shared by that person. Mobile devices are dangerous and can put your privacy at risk someone can easily track your location and can harm you. Teenagers have a higher risk of getting kidnapped since they have many apps stored in their phone that shared their data and personal information and other things. According to Harry Henderson author of science and technology books, cellphones are frequently exposing people’s privacy and they have a big risk. Recently there has been more often publicity of how a website can be using information writing peoples online research. People may be aware that many information of themselves can be extract but do not know that thousands of apps on their cellphones can be able to share their information. (34) Henderson stated that ninety- seven percent applications connect with social media including bank apps, chat apps, have tracked your via location. Many apps are not that safe secure from hackers such as eighty-six percent of apps surveys did not included the basis security that prevented from hackers going through people’s information. Apps are made by many separated developers rather than a software company. Many applications such as Google, Microsoft, have created rules that secure from apps and the ones that are not secured enough have which have break rules will no longer be able to be on sale and devices cannot be capable to access the internal data. Mobile users are concern about their privacy, there was a recent study that many app users have uninstalled an app due to their privacy concerns.(35) The privacy of apps should be clearly, and people should be more careful when they get asked by an app to shared information, people should be alert of the consequences before accepting a app in access. (36)

I surely agree with Henderson, many apps are not secured, and your information can be collected quick by a app. Mobile user should be more aware on what they download to their cellphones when they get asked by an app to allow to access to their gallery, contact list, and other apps.

However, cellphones can also be useful, technology has made everything easier and more with a device that has its own data. We can be able to communicate with our loved ones and get things done faster. For example, in case of an emergency cellphones are utilizes to find people who are abducted by receiving a Amber alert through a cellphone text. While you receive the amber alert through a mobile device there is a higher chance to find people in danger. According to Brandon and Heather, Mobile devices have recipe Amber alerts ever since 2005 by the U.S. Justice Department and National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (par.5) As Brandon and Heather mention amber alerts have help out with abductions of children thanks to the amber alerts.

The messages are sent over a special wireless carrier channel called Cell Broadcast and aren't affected by congestion that might disrupt regular calls and text messages, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. About 100 Amber Alerts, sent simultaneously to all compatible mobile devices within range of the cellular towers in the affected area, have been sent nationwide so far under the Wireless Emergency Alert program. The program was credited with locating an abducted 8-month-old boy in Minnesota in February. A Minneapolis teenager saw an Amber Alert on his phone and called police about a neighbor whose Kia matched the description in the alert. The neighbor was arrested, and the infant was recovered unharmed. Carriers representing 98% of all U.S. wireless subscribers are on the new program, and more than 200 models of phones support the alerts, said Brian Josef, an assistant vice president for regulatory affairs at CTIA, the wireless industry trade association. The alerts "are absolutely saving lives," Josef said. (Brandon and Heather par. 8-11)

Mobile devices have been really handy in a emergency. Caring a cellphone with you will make you feel safe and secure. I can agree that receiving amber alerts through a cellphone can really help to find a abducted child by spreading support. Cellphones have a bad reputation, but they can also be helpful with difficult situations and save people’s lives.

As it is apparent from the arguments provided, Cellphones have been a big issue to our society. Mobile devices have affect our health by the radiation waves, texting and driving, and confidential information. Cellphones are not a device that we should need to depend on it is more likely to harm us.

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