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Real Danger in Sharing Too Much Info Online

In March, a teenage girl was murdered while home alone in Tulsa. A few hours before she died, she tweeted, “Have the house to myself everybody gone.”

Sometimes, we share too much information online.  At the time of this story, it had not been proven the killer saw her Twitter feed; but announcing you’re home alone to the general public is not a good idea.

Like the reporter in this story, I searched on Twitter for the phrase “I’m home alone” and found tweets from young and old alike.

Sadly, the murder case is an extreme example of what could happen if you share too much information online. But even less extreme consequences aren’t worth it. Other consequences of information oversharing could include home burglary while on vacation or identity thieves taking your identity because you posted your birthdate, address, and cellphone number on Facebook.

It’s called the “World Wide Web” for a reason—it’s worldwide.

What should a parent do?

Talk with your kids about the problem of sharing too much online.
Consider getting a parental controls software solution to help you monitor what your teens are saying on social network sites.  At Top Ten Reviews, check out the list of products to help monitor a child’s Facebook use.
And, as one social media expert said: Parents should drill into their child’s mind that when they post on social media, they should avoid revealing the three W’s.  Those stand for who they are with, where they are going, and when they will arrive.

These three W’s are the same details parents insist on having in order to find a child if something goes wrong. So it should be no surprise that a child should not share this information online…with strangers.


Russ Warner is President & CEO of ContentWatch, maker of the top-rated desktop and mobile web filter Net Nanny (www.netnanny.com). He is used as an expert source in the national press on a regular basis and speaks regularly on the topic of Internet Safety. Warner was most recently asked to speak at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on what parents can do to help their children navigate the digital age. Under Warner’s leadership, ContentWatch leads an ongoing Internet safety campaign and has conducted seminars for the Utah Coalition Against Pornography, and numerous schools.

Categories: Online Security

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