In this age of social media domination, we have become massive communicators who are constantly sending and receiving information. This sharing of information has arguably sparked a sort of cultural Renaissance—ideas and information are spread at a rate and volume that has never been experienced before.There are arguments on both sides of this fact, proponents pointing out things like political movements that have been sparked and fueled by social media; while opponents cite issues such as childhood obesity rates, increased bullying and pointing the finger at our obsession with technology. Wherever you stand on social media, it is undeniable how rapidly the cyber landscape is evolving and that we are along for the ride.
However, there is an element of social media that is important to think about: oversharing. With oversharing, I’m not talking about your co-worker who posts all day on Facebook about everything from what time she woke up, to what flavor soup she brought for lunch. (Thankfully Facebook allows you to ‘hide’ these over-posters from your newsfeed.) No, the oversharing I’m referring to is putting personal information into cyberspace that could jeopardize your safety. This is particularly important with location-based social media, which is the majority of them now.
Imagine this: Richard has 357 “friends” on Facebook. Of the 357, he knows 232 really well, these are his friends, co-workers, family, etc. Another 53 he’s met in person once or twice and knows on a first name basis. These could be people he’s met on a business trip, at a ball game, etc. The rest are friends of friends or friend requests of people he really doesn’t know, but was on a friending binge when he joined in 2009! Based on Richard’s posts we know he is recently married, and lives with his wife and dog close to downtown. It’s seemingly benign to post these things, right? Well, then Richard posts that he recently got a bonus and bought a new 60″ smart TV and a new MacBook Pro. A week later, he tweets, “Off to Cancun with the wife for a week! So excited! :)” Now, while Richards livin’ large with a Corona in Cancun, the cyber world knows he has some sweet stuff in his house, where he lives and that no one will be in the house for a week. Richard might as well have just tweeted, “Dear burglars, PLEASE come rob my house!”. And one of those not really friend, friends? That’s Martin.