Internet Safety: Social Networks and Your Safety

Interestingly enough the recent incident involving a US Senator and his personal Twitter account has raised some very alarming questions about posting, what to post and the risk to compromise on your accounts. The various functions that are available on the these accounts plus the add-ons that are available can lead to breaches of security as well as exposure to such things hacking, or account redirection.

Status functions on social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace allow users to keep in close touch and share as much information as often as they would like about where they are going, and what they are doing. Those users how like to move quickly would probably enjoy Twitter – - where you can update your status, post your thoughts or tell a joke in 140 characters or less – - and link it to your social networking profiles so that everything gets updated simultaneously. One can even update their GPS location via Twitter directly from their cell phone, though Facebook also has a GPS function as well.

Our dependency on technology and our willingness to use technology to open up our accessibility to our networks has its upsides. Finding a missing child or tracking an abduction-in-progress can be achieved more quickly today than 20 years ago. Triangulating cell phone transmissions or sending out an AMBER alert affords authorities an advantage of not losing the time they would have lost before these technological advances. However, where there is a helpful use of a tool, there is often an opportunity for it to be abused.

Similar to traditional stalkers, burglars are only really effective if they know your whereabouts — only burglars don’t want to be where you are; instead, they’d rather be at your home when you are away. Our modern advancements and culture of being open with our information has afforded burglars all the information they need to be successful in their chosen field!

Last year a group dubbed the ‘Bling Ring’ was convicted for burglarizing the homes of young celebrities in Hollywood…and they used social networking to do it: But burglary is just one of the crimes that place us at risk. A feature, on most smartphones that is attached to you camera feature allows a geocaching tag to be placed on your phone. Once you upload a picture to your social networking site, anyone can copy, save and then right click on the photo. A few more clicks and they can actually map your movements. Your personal safety is at risk.

As this is a growing trend, and one that has caught the attention of insurance carriers, government agencies, and the media, it would behoove all users of social networking sites to pay careful attention to what information they share, and when they share it. Follow these tips to avoid being burgled via your social networking profile status:

• Do not post your locations via geocaching plans at all.
• If you want to share your plans with your friends, family and fans, opt for letting everyone know when you are safely back in town.
• Do not give any specific information before you depart that would let the reader know when you are departing.

What is your Online Reputation

The old sayings “You are the company you keep” or “Show me a man’s friends, and I’ll show you the man” may not be so accurate in cyberspace. We may not always know who we are friending. A friend of a friend whom you met while at a party one night is an acquaintance, not a friend…but no such distinction exists in cyberspace.

As easy as it is to look up someone’s name and address on the net, Google yourself you will find out just how easy it is just as easy to post information about yourself or anyone else. A simple search of your name will probably yield Online Reputation results even you are surprised by.