You Are Exposed

This information was sent to me from my good friend Terri Eileen Liggins. (terri@theliteraryfront.com). She’s not only a great writer but she uses her talent to keep us in the know about things that can affect our personal and professional success.

If you’ve ever plugged your name into Google, you were probably pretty surprised to see the information that turned up. (If you’ve never done this – you should).  Terri just filled me in on another site I had never heard of and was shocked when I checked it out. See what she has to say:

Have you jumped on the social network bandwagon yet? If not, you’re one among few. Whether people use it for corporate social networking or just plain ol’ noseyness networking, it’s a hybrid of the 21st century that is here to stay.

I know several folks who are still “facebook phobic” and I suppose their hesitation is justified – well, to an extent. When dealing with ALL Internet venues, even just e-mail, one should stay mindful of what he/she is writing. Once your information is out there in cyberspace, it’s virtually there for good. So just because you steer clear of MySpace™ and facebook™ don’t think you’re safe from Big Cyber-Brother or Big Cyber-Sister watching and tracking almost every move you make in life.

Take for instance, this people-search site, www.spokeo.com, compliments of another Ivy League-type brainy kid. Spokeo™ is a powerful search and organization technology that with one click of the mouse far surpasses conventional search engines. What would normally take an individual multiple searches (some paid ones) to determine a person’s age, income, home’s value and credit score is now down to a single search in some cases.  

The concept of Spokeo™ started in 2005, when a Stanford student named Harrison looked for a way to avoid juggling between various social networks to keep up with his friends’ profiles, activities and YouTube™ videos. He rounded up his college buddies who helped him build a social-network aggregator: a collector of information. In 2006, from his parents’ basement (as the cliche’ goes), Harrison’s pioneering concept launched on Techcrunch. Since then, the innovative technology of this Pasadena, CA based company has received numerous accolades from Newsweek, WSJ, PCWorld, and the like.

What distinguishes Spokeo™ from Google™ and facebook™ – and why it’s such an effective people-related search engine – is its ability to gather and organize vast quantities of various types of web data from third-party sources. Just a few of its sources are social networks, phone books and marketing surveys. Who knows what their many other sources consist of. Your utility companies, perhaps? Lenders? Insurance companies? The possibilities are far-reaching.

Of course, you can’t sit around worrying about something like this. Instead, we just have to be watchful and vigilant about all things – that includes our personal information.

Here’s how to remove your personal information from Spokeo’s site now!

1. Go to www.spokeo.com 
2. Put your name in the search bar. Nine times out of ten you will find yourself listed there – and multiple times! 
3. Find the URL of your page(s)
4. Go to the bottom right corner of the home page, click on the Privacy button and remove yourself! 

Get more great information from Terri at www.theliteraryfront.com or email her at terri@theliteraryfront.com.