Facebook Friends May Be Facebook Felons - Be Careful

I posted last month on the risk of privacy lapses on social networks, so a recent news report linking burglaries to Facebook has me back on the topic. Here’s a link to my post about safer home security from August 3 – and my advice on what not to do still stands. There are plenty of perps out there using Facebook and other media to track our coming and going, and they’re putting that knowledge to bad use. Here’s a link to the original news story that triggered my August post. My favorite part of the story is the following:

"You don't know who all is looking at your private info there because it's really not private if you're on Facebook," said Mills (local police officer). "You're posting it for everyone." One Internet security expert said updating your status on any social networking site before going on vacation or just out for the night is as good as leaving a key behind for the burglars.

A more recent article describes the spike in burglaries in Nashua, NH – and how the police busted up a burglary ring tied to 18 break-ins and well over $100,000 of stolen goods. Here’s a link to that story, and I’ve excerpted a pithy portion:

“Authorities are continuing to warn citizens about the dangers of posting their whereabouts on social networking sites such as Facebook. The three men arrested were viewing the sites, and targeted their burglaries accordingly, according to police.”

Here’s a thought: what if your home could post its status to you? Well now it can!   A door opens – instant text or email to you!  Cameras activated by motion? Instant video clip sent to your iPhone. It’s like your house has its own Twitter account!  The only difference - you completely control who gets the information. Power out – tweet! Your home can “poke” you (and the monitoring center), plus anyone else you want to know – family, neighbors, friends, etc. But you need the right 100% wireless alarm system that can do all that, and more.

FrontPoint, the nationwide leader in interactive, wireless home security, is committed to helping you protect your family and property: a good start is thinking twice about the information you broadcast on-line. Remember, there is such a thing as “Twitter TMI!”