Friday, April 8, 2011

Do not broadcast your travel plans

internet thieves-saidaonline

Booked that dream holiday? It might be wise to keep boasting to a minimum; the monitoring of social media sites is becoming a standard practice for burglars. AA Home Insurance has revealed that 10% of respondents in its latest poll admitted to sharing their travel plans via a social media site. A further 8% of those surveyed by AA Home Insurance said someone else within their household had naively told the world via social media that the family home was about to be unoccupied for a spell.

The findings of the AA Home Insurance poll also suggest that women are more likely to share their whereabouts on social network sites than men. (No offence to women, just presenting facts). 13.9% women compared with 7.1% of men surveyed confessed to publishing such information.

Couple of things you could do :

  • Don’t accept friend requests from people you don’t know.
  • Review your security setting, to restrict access to your personal profile information.
  • Use private DM or inbox facilities to communicate private or potentially sensitive messages.
  • Never post your mobile number or home address on social media sites.
  • Remove wall postings from friends that may allude to your travel plans.
  • Remember that when you join a social media group, thousands of people could potentially have access to your profile unless you adjust your security settings.
  • Don’t boast about the expensive new flat screen TV you’ve just bought online

Courtesy : The AA Blog

No comments: