I apologize in advance if this seems like one of those scary nightly news teasers.

It amazes me how many details people reveal on the internet. Between blogging, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and thousands of other sites, people are revealing more information about themselves (and their families) than ever. And while this may all be well and good for social networking and sharing with friends, this same information can be used against you, as virtual bread crumbs to a potential threat.

Recently, a single mom blogger friend made her blog private to protect her posts from unwanted attention of internet weirdos. We talked a bit on the subject. She feels stuck between wanting her blog open for all readers and wanting to protect her family. Since I’ve written on the subject of internet safety and know how to find people online (tools of my former trade), I gave her some tips on how she can start a new blog and make herself and her family a bit harder to find.

She posted my tips on her site and some of her readers found the information useful. One reader felt that she might be a bit careless at times. I checked out her blog. Sure enough, I found something almost immediately.

She posted a picture of her daughter holding an envelope which was addressed to someone. Guess what was at the top left corner of the envelope? You got it, the girl’s name and address. Right there on the web for anyone to see.

Granted, I am a bit more cautious (or paranoid) than most people. Maybe it’s the neighborhoods I’ve lived in. Maybe it’s the time a guy came at me by knifepoint as a child and tried to drag me into the bushes. Maybe it’s all the bad things I’ve seen happen to others. Whatever the reason, I am always looking out for what could happen next and trying to prepare against it.

And one look at the nightly news will tell you that bad things happen to everyday people all too often.

While we can’t protect ourselves from every potential threat, a bit of common sense and caution can help lessen the chance of something bad happening to you or your family.

If you don’t think there are predators out there searching for victims, you haven’t been paying attention.

Consider the case of Edward Duncan III,  who kidnapped a young boy and girl in Idaho. He murdered their family before taking the siblings. He abused both children and murdered the boy right in front of the girl. Fortunately, she survived and Duncan was arrested.

“He told her he was out driving around looking for children to kidnap,” Kootenai County sheriff’s Detective Brad Maskell testified during a probable cause hearing. “He glanced over at the Wolf Lodge property and saw her playing in the yard with her brother and wearing a bathing suit. At that point he chose them as possible kidnap victims.”

*Read her heartbreaking account of the events here.

Just like that, these two children were targeted.

As a parent, that story sends chills down my spine.

Here are some of the tips I passed on to my blogger mommy friend. Obviously, some people may not feel a need for such caution, and that’s fine. I certainly don’t want to add to the constant din of fear mongering on network news. However, if you do find it useful and know someone else who might also, feel free to pass it on.

• Don’t post any personally identifiable information in text, images or videos (including info about schools, jobs, pictures or video which show your home, your license plate or identifiable landmarks near your home or work, places you regularly go – like Joe’s Dance Academy every Friday at 4 pm).
• Start a new blog. Consider changing your name or at least your children’s names in the blog. You might need to start a new blog in order to do this.  Tell those that you know to not use your name or reveal private details in comments or on their blogs. Set up fake info to throw people off – maybe say you are from a state or county one north or south of where you actually are – so you can still talk regionally, but not be direct.
• Another good reason to use false information - you can find out nearly anything about anyone on the Web. From property tax information which reveals your address, the amount of taxes you paid on your property, and in some cases even a blueprint of your house, to companies which offer to sell your private information to anyone with a credit card, it is amazingly easy to find out nearly any legal detail about anyone. Then there’s the things you never think about – an old newspaper article, a mention on somebody’s website or a public record of some sort. Google is an amazing resource to help locate people. It’s a lot harder to do if others don’t know your real name.
• Hide your WHOIS info. If you registered for a domain name, there’s a good chance someone can access to your registration information (including your address and phone number) by doing a WHOIS search. Many domain companies are now offering to hide this information for a nominal fee. Some even offer this as a free service. Some sites offer WHOIS history which will reveal your prior information even after you’ve gone private. If you REALLY want to protect your identity, you may want to start fresh with a new domain name.
• Don’t discuss routines or schedules in advance. Telling people you are going to visit your sister out of town means your house will likely be vacant while you are gone. If you have a local stalker who wants to break in, that’s letting them know a good time. Twitter, and sites like it, can sometimes provide a bit too much information to the wrong people.
• Utilize privacy settings on social sites. MySpace, Facebook, photo hosting sites and even some blogging platforms offer privacy settings which hide your information from people you don’t want to see it. Most sites do not automate such settings, so you will need to do some exploring and learn how to protect your information.

Now that I’ve scared everyone into changing their names, shaving their heads and moving to another country…

This is by no means a complete list. If you have something to add, either tips or maybe even a story about your own experience with internet stalkers, feel free to comment or contact me.

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