Have you ever stopped to consider just how much information you share about your life, your home, your job and your family on social media? Want a hint? It’s a lot. According to The Conversation, 3.2 billion images and 720,000 hours of video images are posted to social media every day.
The advent and viral adoption of social media technology haven’t given the social issues surrounding it the time to catch up. While it’s fun to keep up with friends and family in distant places when on social media, you must always be mindful of how you are placing your family and yourself at risk.
Vacation Pain
Vacation pictures from exotic locations are all the rage on social media. Nothing’s wrong with wanting all your friends to know that you’re having a great time on that gondola ride in Venice.
If your social media settings are public, your friends aren’t the only people who can see your posts. A random search by anyone, including criminals, will reveal every photo and the fact that you’re not at home. A perfect opportunity to break into your house.
You may even be opening yourself to being attacked or robbed while on your vacation. When you let everyone know you’ll be spending the next day in Florence before going to Rome, you are giving everyone an idea of where you are and you can be tracked and followed.
Criminals abroad can be sociable too. That handsome young student who chatted you up at the cafe and asked for your social media credentials? He may be looking for an opportunity to follow your progress online and he may be up to no good.
Your hotel is your home away from home. Being open on social media about where you are staying and where you plan to be can alert your “new friend” that you are not in.
Proud Parent
Your children are your pride and joy and you want everyone to know. There are pictures and videos of them at soccer practice, recitals and family get-togethers.
Crimes against children are an unfortunate reality. One happening in or around your home will be especially painful. When a kidnapper or trafficker can see where your child goes to school, where their soccer team practices, and where you live, it’s easier to observe them from a distance and wait for an opportunity.
Protect your young children by being judicious about what you reveal about them online.
Teen Talk
Similarly, your older children’s social media activities should be monitored. Online chat groups and instant messaging apps are excellent places for your teens to make new friends. Keep in mind that catfishing online is an issue.
Catfishing is someone pretending to be someone they are not. Someone your teen assumes is another teenager can trick them into giving them an invitation to your home. Your teen may also inadvertently reveal details like their real world address or phone number. This information can be ill-used as well.
TikTok Selfie
Your teens don’t only populate online chat rooms. They take selfies and do videos to post on Tik Tok and Instagram among others. This in itself isn’t inherently problematic. You should be concerned about the details captured in the videos and photos.
You don’t want your pricey electronics displayed online where they can attract unwanted attention. Likewise, you don’t want to show new acquisitions like a car, boat, motorhome, expensive art or jewelry. This may cause you to be targeted online by people trawling social media for just that information.
At the very least, criminals may become more familiar with the layout of your home because of photos and videos posted online by either you or your children.
Locking It Down
Securing your home by not oversharing personal information on social media is something that is under your control.
If you have any questions about other ways you can make your home more secure, don’t hesitate to call us. Reach out at 305 – 984 – 9922 or visit our website https://www.quicklymiamilocksmith.com/
