The new “After School” app has Central High School buzzing. Filled with gossip and anonymous confessions, this app seems to be a fun way to communicate with people at school. The app creators encourage users to “post confessions, funny experiences, compliments, feelings, and more!” Although this app is entertaining and interesting, many students feel that the well-intended app may cause more harm than good. Anonymous message boards like this app often become home to cyber-bullying and harassment. The creators claim to have a “zero-tolerance” policy for cyber-bullying, but preventing this from happening is a huge job for anyone.

“Just from what I’ve heard, a lot of things posted on [the app] make people upset,” explained Lily deCordova, a senior at Central.

Are the posts on the app simply harmless gossip, or could they lead to something worse?

Peyton Eddy is also a senior at Central. As the topic of a few posts himself, Eddy knows that posts can range anywhere from innocent to absolutely bizarre.

“People have said mean things,” noted Eddy, “but a lot of the time, [posts] are just creepy.”

“Creepy,” Eddy explained, is inclusive of unwanted and inappropriate comments. According to StopBullying.gov, a website committed to educating youth about preventing bullying, inappropriate sexual comments are a form of bullying.

deCordova fears that the app could be going in a risky direction.

“I can see where [the app] would be fun,” she conceded but also agreed that cyber-bullying is a definite possibility for this kind of app.

Central students, be careful and kind when using this or similar anonymous messaging boards.