If you are a celebrity or a public figure, do not post pictures of your home, your children, or the places you go regularly. You are exposing valuable information about yourself, your habits, and your family. In addition, any bad guy or stalker can quickly discover your exact location by using the longitude and latitude of the location in the photo. This reveals behavior patterns such as favorite restaurants and your home’s neighborhood.
Read: Stop Posting Pictures of Your House and Children on Social Media
How Criminals Use Social Media
There is a whole methodology of how criminals and stalkers launch an attack on somebody. They typically start by staking out the celebrity’s home to watch their behavior and figure out when they enter and leave the property. Often, they pose as a local worker or simply sit in a car nearby and spend hours watching and gathering information. Once they have a good idea of the celebrity’s routine, they start to follow them, tracking their movements and learning more about their habits, such as where they shop or get their hair done. The criminal is essentially carrying out their own form of surveillance.
At the same time, this dangerous individual will be closely monitoring the celebrity’s social media activities. So much information can be gathered here without the star even realizing it. For instance, the stalker can learn about who the celebrity is friends with and where and when they spend time together or where the friends live.
With all of this data, the stalker or criminal can plan their attack. This could be a robbery or burglary when the celebrity is away from home or something far more sinister. In some cases, the stalker may even approach their celebrity fixation and express their romantic fantasy. The celebrity inevitably rejects these advances, which can spiral into even more dangerous and erratic behavior. In fact, rejection can even motivate a stalker even more and intensify their emotions. In difficult situations, this can lead to violent attacks and murder. Therefore, celebrities need to be aware of these risks and take steps to protect themselves and their families.
Being Smart with Social Media
High-profile celebrities must understand that some social media followers may be unstable, dangerous, or even stalking them. These individuals are entirely unpredictable and often violent. Therefore, the celebrity must take precautions around their social media usage to protect their private information.
Read: Why Privacy and Confidentiality are One of the Most Important Elements in Executive Protection
However, it’s not just the celebrity who needs to be cautious – their staff must also exercise discretion when posting on social media, especially regarding the celebrity, their family, or their property. Criminals can be very clever and use any information they can gather.
It is highly recommended that celebrities watch what they post, avoid posting about their children or people close to them, and be careful about disclosing their location. For instance, if they visit a specific restaurant, they only post about the experience a few hours after leaving. This will ensure that everyone from stalkers to the paparazzi is kept at arm’s length.
In addition, celebrities should never post pictures of the outside of their private residence, as it can be easy for criminals to identify their exact location and show up uninvited.
Contact us at The World Protection Group to learn more about our private security and executive protection services. We provide privacy protection for our clients, help protect your personal information, and keep you safe.
