iHCPL #4: Online Smarts

I recently read an article on Internet safety and security protocols. Maybe it is the generation I grew up in, but most of this stuff seems like common sense to me. The Internet is not a safe place. It's greatest asset, anonymity, is also it's greatest problem. Interactions online can happen between anyone. You may think that you are talking to a 40 year-old man. He may only be 15, or 25 or 90. He may be a she. You think you are talking to a computer programmer, but in the physical world, he is a convict, or a writer, or a plane stewardess. You can never truly know. But for some reason, a lot of people seem not to think about that. The Internet is like traveling to a different city and walking around. There are nice, good people, but there are also pick pockets, scammers and liars. Human nature is not changed by the Internet.
Personally, I want to maintain as much of my online anonymity as possible. I like rambling into space. I won't talk about family, friends, work. I won't discuss my bank, credit card, mortgage information or anything like that. Identity theft is disturbingly easy in this day and age without my helping the thieves. I don't understand why people do.
I recently saw a television commercial where there is a car thief mid-theft and a string of people walk up to him, hand him the keys and tell them where the hidden valuables in the car are located. The final woman to hand over her keys, also hands him her purse "for his trouble". While funny, the commercial is also sad since a lot of people do the digital version of that all the time. Would you hand your purse to a stranger to hold? Would you give your credit card to a stranger for safe keeping? No. Then, why give that information to someone you don't know online?
Another thing to keep in mind is that once something appears online, it is there forever, even if you try to delete it. So be careful what you do and say, sometimes actions come back to bite you where you would rather not be bitten. Keep that in mind the next time you post pictures of you and your friends at a bachelor party. Employers will often do a web search of prospective employees. Do you really want a prospective employer seeing pictures of you and your friends acting wild and crazy before you even get an interview? Do you think the "type of person" shown in that picture is likely to make a good employee? Something to keep in mind. Personally, I find all of the social networking sites a bit creepy. I don't want people from elementary school, or camp or whatever, emailing me out of the blue after years of silence. If I have not made an effort to keep track of someone, there might well be a reason besides laziness.
Basically, people should keep a few simple rules in mind while they wander online. Don't give out personal information (and be aware because some people are good at getting that kind of information out of others) and realize that nothing online is truly private.
And yet another long rant by Lunanshee