Could Your Social Media be Used Against You?
A recent ‘scandal’ involving the alleged ‘spying’ by a UK council on parents’ social media accounts has highlighted how social media can be used.
Full article here Bristol Council SEND ‘spying’ scandal sees no date set for probe – BBC News
We, at Verrimus, are always astounded by what people are willing to share publicly on their social media accounts. Social media can impede personal security and cause some serious safeguarding issues. It can be used by individuals, organisations, employers and other agencies to discredit, damage or alter a person’s professional or personal privacy.
Despite many awareness campaigns, aimed largely at teens, urging people to be careful about what and how they share their views, or their opinions and preferences, it seems that some people still do not understand how their social media activity can be used against them. Many people take care when sharing images of their children for example. However, the same people may not be as concerned about sharing a photo of themselves or friends or other relatives. What could someone do with imagery linking individuals at a location together? What can be gleaned from looking at the background of an image? What other information are you sharing widely that could be something you didn’t intend to share?
Before you, share that meme, comment on that post, upload an image, check in at a location, please consider how someone who is hostile towards you could use it against you! What you share on your selected social media platforms can cause you issues outside of social media. From legal threats of ‘vexatious’ posts, to safeguarding concerns posed by stalkers, to reviews of social media by recruitment professionals.
Social media is open source intelligence. It’s a rich resource used often by our colleagues over at SIASS. Ask yourself, who you would be happy sharing all of your opinions, views, locations and personal activities with? Ask yourself, how someone hostile could use your social media posts? Could they damage your personal or professional reputation?
