Unfortunately, we live in a world with a lot of crazy people who do a lot of crazy things.
People break into houses, cars and businesses on a daily basis. Children and teens get molested. People even get raped. Murder happens all the time. It is truly heart breaking to hear about some of the things on the news that happen in the world that we live in. It is a damn shame. Why people do things like this is always in question. Maybe they are on drugs or maybe they are just crazy. But it is what it is so we just have to deal with it the best that we can.
Unfortunately we can’t stop the crazies from acting out on their inappropriate behavior, but we can take a few safety precautions into consideration and stop helping them out.
1. Checking in on Facebook
Are you one of those people that check in on Facebook everywhere you go? Do you check in every time you are out to dinner, at the store, at the gym or even worse on vacation? Sure, it is great to update your friends of your location and where you are, but often times people who break into your home could be someone that you know. Think about how many friends you have on Facebook. Do you trust them all? If you check into places on Facebook and they know where you live, you could be helping them know when you aren’t home so they can break in.
2. Adding people on Facebook
With that being said, do you actually know everyone that you add on Facebook? Add people with caution. Just because you have mutual friends does not mean that you should add them. Maybe someone else you know is one of those people who just adds everyone. Scope them out first.
3. #Hashtags
What are hashtags really for? Finding something of a specific topic on Twitter or Instagram primarily. You add photos and you add hashtags with things about yourself, i.e #fitness #makeup #salad #shopping. So these are probably okay. But what happens when you add #chuckycheese #babyboy #blueeyes #3yearold? Like I said, unfortunately there are some sick freaks out there and we see it everyday in the news. There is always the possibility that a criminal could have some intelligence or have social media and start searching for key words or phrases and you could easily become a target. So, if you use hashtags, just be careful.
4. Stick figure bumper stickers
This one is almost the same as checking in on Facebook. Let’s say for example you have a family of 4; mom, dad, son, daughter. Your stick figure family is on the back on your car. A criminal could see you as a potential target and see that all 4 people are in the vehicle. Maybe they decide to follow you home to see where you live. Next time they may see that all of you leave. Boom. You are an instant target and they know that no one is home.
5. Your alarm system
Don’t be relaxed when entering your password as your friends or co-workers follow you through your door for a dinner party. Criminals are not always dressed to fit the part. Sometimes they look like your classy friend. Be careful who you trust and don’t let anyone see you enter in the code.
6. TMI
You are probably giving people too much information about yourself. Don't tell people how much money you make or how much money you have saved. Don't tell them how much you spent on something. This is a fair give away. Even if the person that you told isn't a criminal, that doesn't mean that it may not accidentally come up in conversation at a later date to someone that is. They could easily tell something about you just as well as you could about yourself.
Of course, all of these things are just possibilities and they may or may not happen to you. However, it is important to be cautious about everything you do. We see stuff like this happen on the news every single day. Just don’t make the mistake of thinking that it could never happen to you because it can truly happen to anyone. There are crazy people everywhere, every city, every town, every state, every country. It could happen to you, too.
