Scare the Facebook Out of You

Facebook is scary. LinkedIn is treacherous. MySpace is downright dangerous. We’ve all heard the warnings… and most of us ignore them. But, read a couple of recent best-sellers and it might scare the social media pants right off of you.

What are criminals and stalkers up to these days? What state-of-the-art strategies are being used by the really bad guys?

To answer those questions, we decided to ask novelists Michael Connelly and George Dawes Green. But, darn. Neither of those authors was in our Outlook phone directory. Go figure.

Amazon’s Sneak Peek

So, we had to turn to Amazon.com’s special feature called “Search Inside This Book” (also known sometimes as “Look Inside This Book,” but we digress):

For instance, let’s use this Amazon search feature on Mr. Connelly’s super-scary book, The Scarecrow. Type in the word “LinkedIn” and it will make you more than pause:

What did Michael Connelly’s stalker find out about his young prey by visiting her LinkedIn page? He learned her dog’s name, her favorite band and the name of her favorite pizza hangout. Indeed, here’s this exceedingly dangerous criminal musing on the naïveté of his victim:

“They believed they could bare their souls on the Internet, post photos and information at will, and not expect any consequences.”

We won’t tell you what happens or what other dangers lurk in this masterful mystery. But we will tell you that:

“He was circling her and she didn’t even know it.”

…by Mr. Green, with a MySpace, on the Internet

Use Amazon.com’s “Search Inside” method to get inside George Dawes Green’s compelling new book, Ravens, and a chillingly similar message unfolds.

In this case, Green’s stalker finds his prey’s pictures (and more) on MySpace. Those pages reveal that his intended victim has a very close relationship with her grandmother – closer even than with her mother. He also learns the victim’s age, devotion to Johnny Depp and her favorite bands. Using that information he…. but, we promise not to ruin the story.

The Friends of Your Friends

If you read either of these two books, my guess is you’ll head right to your privacy settings on MySpace (or Facebook, or LinkedIn).

Better yet, buy both of these books for the young people in your life. No, young people don’t know everything about the Internet. You just think they do.

If you’re younger, buy both of these books for the old codgers in your life. They’re on Facebook and LinkedIn these days even more than you are – but they usually have no idea how vulnerable they are.

Sure, your friends are all wonderful folks. But, what about the friends of their friends? Can they see the photos and private information that you post? Usually, unless you’ve been very careful – the answer is “yes.”

Are you and your family at risk when you post information to social networking sites? Just ask George Dawes Green and Michael Connelly. Or, better yet, read these books – and then decide for yourself.