Mar 8 2010
Exposed on the Internet
When people talk about how technology is bad, they’re almost always talking about how there’s good-for-nothing information on the net, or how people stop talking face to face because they facebook instead. But I’m more scared by the continuous access we provide to our daily doings online. I’m scared of Twitter.
Privacy on the net
A growing number of people are now posting everything about themselves in facebook status updates and twitter updates. Including where they are right now. And if people know where you are, it also means they know where you’re not… at home!
Don’t waste time leaving the lights on
Whenever my family heads out on any vacation, we always leave some lights on. It makes sure that people don’t see an empty home ripe for robbing.
We don’t tell anyone either, except a neighbour (who we completely trust) so that they can check in once in a while. Other people stop their subscriptions to any magazines or newspapers so that there isn’t a pile of newspapers out front to show that no one is inside to collect them.
We take all these precautions and all it takes is for someone to check twitter and see the words “With my family catching the sunset in the Philippines!” or “Cairo is really hot…” and they know that you’re out and you’re home is nice and empty.
GPS phones make it worse
Did you know you can update twitter and facebook from phones now? And if you choose to, they’ll even include your location!
Check out PleaseRobMe.com and see how many people have that option enabled. Here’s a quote from their website.
The danger is publicly telling people where you are. This is because it leaves one place you’re definitely not… home. So here we are; on one end we’re leaving lights on when we’re going on a holiday, and on the other we’re telling everybody on the Internet we’re not home.
It gets even worse if you have “friends” who want to colonize your house. That means they have to enter your address, to tell everyone where they are. Your address… on the Internet… Now you know what to do when people reach for their phone as soon as they enter your home. That’s right, slap them across the face.
- PleaseRobMe.com
Yes people, advertise that you’re not home.
But it’s not just that: Everything on the internet stays there
Make a post about how you hate work. Or what you did on your weekend. Or maybe it’s your friend who makes that post and tags you in a compromising photo. Like one that shows you going rock climbing when you told your boss you were sick with the flu.
Whatever is posted on the internet will get up there and stay there. And your employer may very well find it if they just google your name. Do you know that some companies now force you to add your boss to your facebook profile? They want to make sure you’re not hurting the image of the company.
And if they do find out and you plan to change jobs? The new company you apply at may very well do a google search on you too. You know, just to make sure you’re not a convicted criminal or anything. But instead, that embarrassing blogpost comes up about the time you complained about your company and told all your friends not to buy their products. And the new company goes, “I need a team player, not a whiner”, and they don’t hire you.
Maybe I’m just being paranoid
I could be paranoid. It wouldn’t be the first time. I’m usually very paranoid about my privacy. So please don’t EVER post anything that resembles my address online.
No related posts.
–
Mar 10, 2010 @ 02:49:21
your paranoia is contagious (O.O)
ps: me likey new layout
Mar 10, 2010 @ 11:08:13
Thanks on the layout. The previous one just wasn't working for me.
And as you can tell, I can be paranoid sometimes. Which I still maintain is a good thing. Especially when you have good reason to be paranoid. (But then is it still called paranoia or just reasonable precaution?)
Mar 12, 2010 @ 16:23:20
Your address? Like 15, Jalan Tangkai 4/456 Seri Kembangan Selangor Malaysia? That address?
Mar 12, 2010 @ 23:31:33
OMG! You're now officially banned for life. I will never forgive you! I can never trust you again!
…
So, when are we gonna hang out? Hahahaha.
Seriously though, I would be pretty freaked out if anyone could ever find my address online.
Mar 13, 2010 @ 09:42:41
I shall grace the sweet earth of Malaysia again June 4th. Hanging out shall have to wait till then. Unless you're acquainted with Doraemon's pintu suka hati in which case sharing is caring.
Mar 14, 2010 @ 06:56:59
I miss doraemon. Yes, one pintu suka hati coming up. When are people gonna invent it!!???
June 4th sounds so far away though. Oh well, I'll try to survive till then.
Mar 14, 2010 @ 13:09:44
AWWW shucks. nak keychain? tengoklah macam mana.
Mar 13, 2010 @ 08:07:05
im safe. coz i only update my facebook status to say how lapar i am. which is all the time. contohilah saya.
Mar 13, 2010 @ 08:32:16
Hahaha! Bagus betul kakok saya sorang nih. Nok update pasal makanan je. I'm lapar all the time too. Tapi dok goyak kat facebook je lah.
Mar 13, 2010 @ 11:56:50
klu mung tulih kt facebook pong ore x cayo. sbb mung kuruh. mung gi yemen makae banyok deh. sedak weii makene arab.
Mar 14, 2010 @ 06:59:18
Sedihnyo ore tok cayo! Tu lah akibat duduk dakpe komputer sokmo. Jadi kuruh pulok.
Mar 17, 2010 @ 06:05:44
"Do you know that some companies now force you to add your boss to your facebook profile? They want to make sure you're not hurting the image of the company."
Really? I didn't know that was legal. How do they enforce it though, through company policies or through terms of employment contracts? The employer has a right to protect his legitimate business interests, but forcing employees to add their bosses sounds like taking it a bit too far.
Mind sharing the source on this, Lutfi? Sounds like something I can take up with my boss, hee.
Mar 17, 2010 @ 07:11:11
O.o really? Illegal you say.
Actually I'm not sure how it's implemented. It might not be in the contract but more of a "my boss asked me an I can't refuse" thing. I read it up a while ago (last year) so I'll look back for the source.
There was a debate about it (which, sadly enough, was probably the only reason I noticed it) on how far employers could go.
I'll get the source to you. You just have to promise that you share with me how it turns out with your boss. (the non-confidential parts anyway)
Mar 17, 2010 @ 10:05:10
Ok, I can't find the articles I read before. I'm not even sure if there were any in the first place.
But employers definitely google you first and check your facebook profile before they hire you. "70 percent of U.S. hiring managers said they had eliminated candidates based on what they found." You'd be surprised how many people apparently don't enable their privacy settings or just make it private "within their network". Think the network of "Kuala Lumpur" or "Ottawa". Not very private.
I also know that in America where they still mostly use "at-will" employment, your employer can fire you for any reason except a few protected ones (age, gender, religion, race, sexual direction). Otherwise, they can fire you for anything. Including not liking the colour of your shoes.
So they can fire you if you don't add them as facebook friends and worse, they can legitimately fire you for not giving them your facebook and email passwords. One even asked for passwords as part of the interview process! Example: http://scitech.blogs.cnn.com/2009/06/19/want-a-jo…
Most probably it was this story that I read about Bozeman. Although I was sure I'd read of quite a few companies forcing you to add your boss… Oh well.
Mar 18, 2010 @ 00:41:21
Oh, I don't think I said it was illegal. I was just wondering out loud whether it was legal.
That's nuts, that's really nuts. I don't think any person would go for a job that forces you to turn over your passwords, websites, et all. Ridiculous! Unless you really want the job.
I suppose that's how employment goes in the US. Over here though, our employment laws are very protective of employees and their rights. Dismissing them is hard to do (I didn't know this before) and it's got to be done with just cause and excuse. Say an employee breaches a company policy. Although that's sufficient ground to actually terminate his contract, not so says the Industrial Courts. They have to actually see whether the conduct of the employee is serious enough to warrant a dismissal. Crazy kan? The first case I worked on involved a guy who had got himself into plenty of trouble, breaching company policies left and right. When my boss asked me to do some research and see if the employing company had the right to fire him, I thought "pfft, yeah!". Then I learned it wasn't that obvious.
The above is just sharing some info, I get so much of it at work it spills out sometimes. Hope you don't mind, because sharing is caring! Haha
Thank you, by the way. It's interesting to see how law develops to deal with these new situations.
Mar 22, 2010 @ 07:11:56
Crazy ain't it? I don't know how people keep their jobs over there. I guess that's why it's so easy to hear "You're fired" from american TV.
Wow, I didn't know it was THAT hard to fire someone in Malaysia. I knew that the contract (that we usually have) protects you from being fired arbitrarily, but I thought you could easily be fired if you breached policy. So what do I have to do to get fired?
Sharing is totally caring! Please share. It's not everyone that I can talk to about these things without them getting bored.
If you know of any developments about this from work, please share and care!