About Personal Web Sites

Many people - especially new computer users - are drawn to MSN Groups because they are fairly easy to use, they look good, and they give you a lot of freedom to create interesting pages.  They also have some good security features.  Unfortunately, it doesn't matter how good the security is if people don't use them.  And they can also lead to a potential nightmare when people are too trusting with personal information online. 

How much information is too much?

True story:  I was surfing one of my favourite MSN Groups one day and I came across a message from one of the other members.  It was just a simple message stating that she would be out of town for a couple of weeks and she wouldn't be posting. 

The group has over 20 000 members, so one person not posting really wouldn't be missed.  So why post the message?  It turned out later, this person had posted the message in all the groups she belonged to without thinking of the potential consequences.

Anyway, her post had me curious, so I clicked on her name.  She had been a bit clever and hid her email address and didn't have a link to her personal profile.  But she wasn't clever enough.  I went to the Member Directory and found her nickname there along with her personal profile.  In her profile was a link to her personal group.  So I decided to check it out.

Here's where she got really sloppy.  Her personal group was open - that means people who were not members could go in and see everything that was in there.  And there was a lot to see!

First of all, there was her email address.  It was out in the open.  Like many newbies on the internet, she made the mistake of using her real name on her web-based email (like janedoe123@hotmail.blah.blah.blah for example).  She also used her name in postings to the message boards.  So I knew who she was.

Secondly, through reading messages on the boards, I was able to find out what city and state she lived in.  Do you know that if you are listed in your local telephone directory, anyone with internet access can look you up?  For a fee, anyone can find out your unlisted phone number, as well.  Also, some city maps use aerial photographs that allow you to zoom in enough to see the individual houses on a street.  So not only was I able to find out where she lived, I could potentially even see her house and yard.  Kind of creeps you out, doesn't it?

Thirdly, in her photo album were all sorts of pics of her and her family and the family pets.  Of course many of these photographs where taken inside her house.  So any thief would have a good idea what she has and where she has it.

I was aghast that I could find out so much information about some stranger online just by clicking through a series of links.  Total time for me to find all of that out: two minutes!  I immediately went to the manager of the groups where I found her message and asked them to remove it for her personal safety.  The thing that bothers me now is that I don't think she realizes to this day how badly she has compromised the security of her home and the safety of her family by creating that group.

Kids pages

Many kids today are creating their own personal web pages.  As a parent, have you taken a good look at what is on your kids pages?  Without realizing it, they can compromise their safety quite easily.  Here are a few things you should look for when checking out your kid's web site:

• What kind of personal information have they made public.  Sit down with your kids and have a talk with them about what is and what is not appropriate for them to post online.
• Check to see if they have uploaded any pictures.
• Check to see if their email address is visible.
• Many kids will have poems, or "about me" statements on their sites.  It's the perfect opportunity for predators to pick up information about what kids are feeling, what their interests are, and what their personalities are like.

For additional information on how to keep your children safe online, please check out our Child Safety page.