Online Safety Tips for Genealogists
Genealogists use the internet to do research and to add to their family trees. There is a wealth if useful genealogy information online, and this has resulted in an increased interest in genealogy. Unfortunately, some people use the internet to harass others and steal personal information. Here are some online safety tips for genealogists to follow.
Make your social media accounts private.
Social media accounts are set public by default. People must go into the privacy settings and opt-in to making their account private. The biggest advantage of having a private account is that it gives a person some control over who is able to view what they post. Genealogists may also want to make their genealogy website accounts private.
For best results, it is a good idea to limit what accounts you choose to follow. Following family members and close friends should be fine. Do not accept follow requests from strangers, especially if their account looks questionable.
Avoid posting personal information.
Some people use a fake name on their personal social media accounts. Doing so makes it much harder for nefarious strangers to scour the internet for more information about that person. “Genealogist Judy” is safer than if Judy used her real first name and surname. She might also want to post a photo of her dog instead of one of herself.
Turn off your location information.
Go into the settings on social media sites and look for something that mentions location or geotagging. Turn it off. Leaving it on means that the social media site is posting the location where the user was at when the post was made. That information could be used by stalkers who want to find someone.
Wait to post the photos taken at a family reunion until long after you have left the location. It is possible for someone to use clues in the photos to determine where you are at.
Use the block button.
It is entirely appropriate to block people on social media who have harassed you. In addition, it is wise to block accounts that appear to be set up specifically for the purpose of harassing people. This is a good way to limit the amount of unwanted drama that clutters social media.
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