Please Rob Me

[Mahone]

BBC News - PleaseRobMe website reveals dangers of social networks

Please Rob Me

Just an example really how how much information people inadvertently give away online.

[gabelpa]

How many of these people would leave the house unlocked when they leave? Loads of houses are empty during the average work week.

Twitter is just another way of parking out front to see when people leave. It only gets interesting when you start pairing up the "I just bought a $3000 TV" with the "I just left for a month long vacation" tweets, which is a bit more of a task.

[Mahone]

Twitter is just another way of parking out front to see when people leave. It only gets interesting when you start pairing up the "I just bought a $3000 TV" with the "I just left for a month long vacation" tweets, which is a bit more of a task.

Lol, it's far less conspicuous than sitting in a car outside, and takes a lot less work. I do find it interesting though exactly how much personal information the general public are starting to announce to anyone who will listen. I personally always try and avoid specifics.

[Lbybug]

did you steal this from me? my friend showed it to me yesterday

[pam]

Lol, it's far less conspicuous than sitting in a car outside, and takes a lot less work. I do find it interesting though exactly how much personal information the general public are starting to announce to anyone who will listen. I personally always try and avoid specifics.

Oh now Mahone. Look at how much I know about you. Your name is Mahone, you live in the UK, you work in IT, you had a flood in your bathroom. You...ummmmm....hmmmmm....I'm sure I'll think of other things.

[Mahone]

did you steal this from me? my friend showed it to me yesterday

Lol nooooooo. Would I do such a thing

[Mahone]

Oh now Mahone. Look at how much I know about you. Your name is Mahone, you live in the UK, you work in IT, you had a flood in your bathroom. You...ummmmm....hmmmmm....I'm sure I'll think of other things.

Lol. There is actually a bit more than that about me on the forum. If anyone was really that bothered about finding out who I was, where I worked and where I lived; using the information I have posted solely on this forum in several different posts, and a small process of deduction, it wouldn't be difficult to work out.

Edited February 19, 2010 by Mahone

[Blackmarch]

Lol, it's far less conspicuous than sitting in a car outside, and takes a lot less work. I do find it interesting though exactly how much personal information the general public are starting to announce to anyone who will listen. I personally always try and avoid specifics.

other than for 1 or 2 items i generally use different specifics at different sites.

[Gwen]

i sat my stepson (14 yrs) down and showed him how much info can be gathered from simple google searches and "general" information. we started with if you give out your real first and last name, school, what sport he plays, things like that which may seem "innocent" when spread out over time. but if someone is targeting children they have amazing patience and will keep notes on kids they want to victimize. didn't take long for us to pull up google maps and narrowed down the address to a few blocks. he was quite shocked. i allowed him to do the same process with his dad, me, his mom, step-dad... adults are a lot easier. we are more in the pubic eye and more willing to share info. hopefully it was a lesson he keeps in mind for a long time.

[pam]

I saw the status of a friend on facebook this morning and made me think of this thread.

Well, close to 7AM. Off to TCB at Janisse Lane, in Lake Elsinore...so off and running, and of course breakd at Annie's, but first white chocolate at Arco...haven't had one for a while..then off to San Jacinto to see my daughter, granddaughter...

Could you really give out more information?

[Lbybug]

i think i'm gonna give you all my info on my fb status from now on pam

[pam]

I thought you already did?

[Lbybug]

hahaha shhhh don't tell anyone that status you posted was really mine.

[ADoyle90815]

One thing that disturbed me was seeing a mommy blog where there was a link to her 7 year old daughter's blog which was actually public. That's a bit like putting a billboard to pedophiles out there, in my opinion. It's one thing if a child has a blog, but it really should be made private, or only available for family to read at the very least. Another thing I've seen with blogs in general is that people have posted pictures where the number of their house is visible. That's a bad idea with Google Earth and Street View available now, as anyone could use that picture to find out where someone lives.

[wondering23]

I have to admit its only now that I'm older I've started to worry about internet security. all my internet profiles are private/hidden and I use a fake name on the profiles for instance "Real first name Pineapple".

Last year I even went through old forums I used to visit and purged all my posts, but still if anyone wanted to they could still probably search enough information to find out who I am.

I also used to frequent another forum and a user posted a link to a bridal wedding blog by one couple. The blog was a bit vapid and people were having a giggle about it. The bride kept on talking about her future husbands work, what he used to do, where he studied all this information that one night a user thought it would be funny to look him up. They found his details and it escelated to someone actually calling him at work and pretending to be a potential customer. This thread was over 100 pages long and from the information she wrote on the blog we knew everything about her and her husbands life. Someone could have even turned up at her weddining, or her weekly sewing classes, or the variety of places where "James and I also go for dinner every saturday morning at 10am here"

[Lbybug]

what i find really scary are the facebook groups "we're getting married and need your address" or "i've lost my phone and need your number". i'd say 90% of the time i see these (and i see probably 2 or 3 a week), they're not made private. and even then, if you join, anyone can see your address/phone number if you post it. people can have INSTANT access to hundreds of addresses, phone numbers, names. now THAT'S scary.

[Mahone]

I don't mind publishing my phone number on facebook so much. Fortunately that is one of those things that I can change with considerable ease and without any major loss to myself. I wouldn't just send it to a random group however.

[Lbybug]

oh i put my phone number up....my cell phone at least. but my landline i try to avoid giving out....of course i don't even have a landline right now....so that puts that to rest.