What Does ASL Mean and How Can You Protect Your Kids Online?

Have you noticed your child using the abbreviation ASL online? Nowadays, it doesn’t always mean what it used to, especially on social media, such as TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat. In today’s world, where children rarely function without their phones, it’s hard to keep up with all the slang words.

With our guide to understanding your Gen Z child, you’ll be able to grasp what ASL means in slang and how to recognize its threats on social media and in texting. Moreover, you’ll learn about the most dangerous apps and how to protect your child online. After learning about the ASL slang meaning, you’ll be able to recognize, understand, and shield your child from the dangers of social media platforms.

Table of Content

Part 1: Original Meaning of ASL

Initially, the ASL abbreviation only stood for American Sign Language. It’s a non-verbal language that uses hand and face gestures to convey meaning. It has all the linguistic properties of a spoken language, but its grammar differs from spoken English. The deaf community in the USA has been using ASL for more than 200 years.

Unfortunately, there isn’t universal sign language. Therefore, American Sign Language is different from, for instance, British Sign Language (BSL). So, someone fluent in ASL may be unable to understand someone using BSL and vice versa. Overall, it’s important to expose a deaf child to ASL in the early years of life to help them learn it more naturally and fluently.

Part 2: ASL Meaning Today

With the spread of social media and online chat rooms, teens started using abbreviations for many phrases they commonly use when texting. Therefore, even though the original meaning of ASL is still valid and standard, it has an additional slang meaning. On social media platforms, ASL is often an abbreviation for “Age, Sex, Location.”

This abbreviation is common among strangers when chatting to get to know each other and get information about the other person’s age, gender, and country. Since many social media platforms, like TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat, offer the private message option, anyone can contact anyone and initiate a conversation. For example, one such conversation can go like this:

A: ASL?

B: 16, m, USA, you?

A: 17, f, USA.

Here we can see the age of the two strangers, their gender (m – male, f – female), and where they live. After these messages, they can continue the conversation and get to know each other more, knowing the basic personal information of their interlocutor.

Moreover, there’s another slang meaning to this abbreviation, which is “As Hell”. This other meaning of ASL could be used to intensify a statement, for example:

“Look at this guy. He’s tall asl”, or

“My girlfriend isn’t answering my texts, she’s mad asl”.

This use of ASL abbreviation is also very common on social media such as Instagram and Tiktok. Moreover, there are other slang abbreviations commonly found on social media, such as:

• Wyd - What’re you doing,
• Hmu - Hit me up,
• Af - As fuck, etc.

ASL abbreviation with the meaning “As Hell”, can be interchangeably used with the acronym “AF”, which means “As Fuck”. These two slangs mean the same thing, so feel free to switch between them when needed.

Part 3：ASL Meaning Red Flags

As a responsible parent, your inner alarms are undoubtedly going off right now, as they should. Even though it may sound like this information doesn’t reveal a lot, it’s a serious matter. If someone sends a message to your child requesting this information, they’re compromising your child’s privacy. Being innocent or just careless, children divulge their personal information online lightly.

One of this slang term’s red flags and risks is that it can lead to grooming. Grooming happens when an adult builds trust and a relationship with a minor to exploit and manipulate them. It’s a severe issue online, where everyone can lie and pretend to be someone else.

Moreover, getting an unsolicited ASL text can lead to your child feeling the pressure to answer and share information they aren’t comfortable sharing. Your child may not notice this lack of consent, but your responsibility is to protect them from potential predators and other threats. Fortunately, you can protect your children online in several ways, which we’ll explain in the following paragraphs.

Part 4: Talk to Your Kids About the Use of the ASL Slang

One of the first safety measures you can take would be to have a serious conversation with your child. As your children grow up, they’ll be more and more independent, and you can’t do much about that. However, while they’re still young, communication is of utmost importance.

You know what approach works best for your child, but our suggestion is to sit down with your child and create a safe environment instead of an intimidating one. Start by explaining that you completely trust them and their judgment, and assure them they’re not in trouble.

Ask them about their social media and who they are talking to online. Be patient and let them talk. Don’t panic and scare your child if you notice something’s off. Assure them again they’re not in trouble and that it isn’t their fault. Make them understand the dangers of ASL texts and sharing information with strangers online. Finish by saying they’re never obligated to respond to ASL or other messages.

Part 5: What Are the Most Dangerous Apps and Platforms?

With the constant growth of the digital world and the number of social media platforms, children and teens are significantly more exposed to online predators, manipulation, and bullying. Therefore, we can’t say that even one app or platform is entirely safe for your child.

The most widely-used apps, such as TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat, might be some of the most dangerous due to being so widespread and influential. Since people exclusively use these apps to share photos and videos, it’s easy to encounter some of the threats we’ve mentioned. Therefore, being wise, protecting one’s privacy, and not answering texts from strangers are critical steps to staying safe.

Part 6: Protecting Your Kids Online

Since talking with your children can only do so much, there’s another way to protect them online. That includes installing a parental control app. Our suggestion is to use Wondershare FamiSafe. FamiSafe will make your life easier and give you peace of mind. It offers many valuable features, such as monitoring your child’s screen time, online activity, and real-time location.

More importantly, it allows you to blur or delete inappropriate and explicit content from your child’s phone. Moreover, you can use Suspicious Text Detection to get a notification when your child receives inappropriate texts, such as those with ASL. FamiSafe is genuinely helpful and will save you from worrying too much.

The steps for installing FamiSafe are pretty straightforward:

1. Download FamiSafe on Google Play or App Store and install it on your phone. You can also try FamiSafe online by tapping the button below:

2. Register to FamiSafe via Wondershare ID or log in using an existing account.

3. Download FamiSafe Jr. on your child’s phone and connect the phones by scanning the QR code or entering a numerical code.

4. After you’ve connected your device to your child’s device, set up parental controls with the startup wizard.

That’s it! You can adjust the settings and make any changes whenever you want. With FamiSafe at your disposal, you don’t need to worry about your kid’s safety online.

Conclusion

Even though ASL originally only meant American Sign Language, the abbreviation has another meaning nowadays. Therefore, if you receive a text on TikTok, Instagram, or Snapchat that says ASL, know that the person asks you for your age, sex, and location. Although it seems harmless, it could be dangerous, especially for innocent children.

To avoid the risks of strangers obtaining your child’s personal information, like ASL, we suggest having an honest talk with your child and warning them about the dangers of the internet. However, to be sure you’re doing everything you can to protect your child online, download Wondershare FamiSafe. With this parental control app, you can monitor and limit your child’s screen time and online activity and protect them from inappropriate content.