Editor’s note: This article was first published in November 2013; the geotagging and location features of Twitter, Instagram and Facebook it describes reflect that time and have changed since.
Although there have already been several campaigns asking people to use their “brains” when sharing content on social media, comedian Jack Vale has shown once again how easy it is not only to see what you share, but also to find out where you are.
Imagine a stranger comes up to you in the street and knows your name, where you have been, who your partner is and all sorts of other personal information about you. Put to “criminal” good use, that is the best inside information a clever crook could have, even to blackmail you.
In fact, it did not take Jack Vale much effort to work out where to find his victims, users of Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, because the users themselves had told him where to find them through their posts and photos tagged near their location.
While everyone knows, to some extent, that the information and photos they share can be seen by anyone, very few people think about how they would react if a stranger walked up to them with that information. In the video we see everything from astonished faces to the discomfort and anger of one couple, who do not hesitate to thank him for invading their privacy and even say they will call the police if it happens again. Your privacy really is being invaded by everyone if a complete stranger has managed to find you.
So if you can’t avoid sharing some of your personal information, at least try to avoid geotags as much as you can.
Watch: Jack Vale’s “Social Media Experiment” on YouTube
Featured image: Erica Fischer, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr.
