Privacy

[oddoneout]

How private are you on forums? Why are you that level of private?

For me I''m generally a private person and I think it is safer to divulge few details.

 

[lulu]

I would tell you, but it''s private.

 

[perry]

That is a great question with lots of implications:

In my case I have always been willing to share town I live in, occupation, hobies, etc. I rarely post my weekend plans (but have in certain cases - for example: When I got a tour of the gemvaults of palagems http://www.palagems.com/home.htm ; or in another case when I was going to some convention or show related to the topic - such as the Chicago /Minneapolis / Milwaukee gem shows).

For forums that allow it - I have an email address available; and I have gained some interesting freinds that way.

I never post my street address or phone number and I doubt I have ever posted a picture of my house. Of course - I may share that level of information via email.

Life events and situations: I have found the forums to be very helpfull and share where relevent. For example, I run the "parents fund" and have a primary responsibility for my parents financial status and some other issues (fortunately, I have a sister & brother who are in the medical field who has taken on the medical decission side). Thus - I was a big participant in some of the past threads on taking care of elderely parents. Many other things as well.

Oh, and Perry is my real name. It is who I am and I am proud of who I am. I don''t need to hide. Of course, most of you do not know if it is my first, middle, or last name (although those who have met me at gemshows or have had other interactions do know).

I am aware that there is a concern that some of the lessor elements of society have used internet forums and social networks to determine who is there next target of prey. That has always gone on - even back in the day of the community bulletin board and local talk scean (before the internet). The only difference is now you can more easily be targeted from a distance (of course, the vast majority of crime is local - and I have my doubts that internet forums have really increased the crime rate that much - all it did was change the way the information was gathered and contacts were made).

I will admit that someone who knows what they are doing can build a pretty good profile on you from what you post - and may be able to identify exactly who you really are (even if you never use your name). In my case - many years ago I was contacted directly (phone call) by someone who had figured it out based on the accumulated total of the postings I had done and by local research. My phone number is in the phone book, I have appeared in local newspapers for some of my accomplishments, etc. That person had no ill intent - but did it in part based off of the challange of doing so from a thread on how secure (or unsecure) the internet and email are. For those that don''t know: email and the internet are basically inherently unsecure - you have to work at it to have any security (and the good methods cost money).

Have a great day,

Perry

 

[Nomsdeplume]

Date: 8/30/2009 9:49:37 AM
Author: lulu
I would tell you, but it''s private.

Ha ha ha!!

 

[kenny]

I''m much more private here since this is a forum about diamonds which are a prime target for theft.

 

[Tuckins1]

I don''t show faces in any pictures, and I don''t give specifics about my name, or family''s names. I have discussed the area where I live, but nothing too specific. (Like the city and state, but nothing more...)

 

[somethingshiny]

I don''t share my name, town, etc. But, I''ll share lots of family details--where we go, what we do, family history stuff. I don''t think anyone is going to track me down by knowing what kind of meals my mom made when I was a kid. (unless of course, it''s a sibling!)

 

[lyra]

I''m fairly private. I''ve had real life stalkers, or rather my husband has had them and I had to live through it with him. So now I''m much less open.

 

[Sizzle]

I am fairly private online. I dont'' think I''ve posted actual face photos. I have discussed the general area I am from, but never the exact location. I think I am more concerned because this is a diamond/jewlery board. I am at time amazed at the information some divulge. Its like look at my glamourous home, family photos etc and my multi thousand (if not milion) dollar collection of jewels, which I hide under my bead in an old shoe box.. by the way, I''m going to Boliva for the month, come on over!

I also never understood why people post photos of other family members/friends. lI wonder if they obtain permission first. I would hate to think photos of me are all over the web somewhere without my permission!

 

[Black Jade]

I try to be very private.
I would never divulge my real name or my place of residence and I would not make plans to meet anyone in person that I''ve met online. I would never post a photograph of me or a family member and when I posted photos of my jewelry, I tried to make sure that the setting it was in was not identifiable. I would rather be safe than sorry.

I will tell personal details like my age, my weight, my number of kids, my interests and career, but not in a way that anyone could figure out who I was (at least, I hope not). I always think its best to private but I also think it is probably especially important on a message board where you''re talking about super- expensive jewelry. This site has many, many lurkers and who knows who they are or what are their intentions?

 

[Richard Sherwood]

I try to keep it private that I pack a .357 magnum.

 

[strmrdr]

Date: 8/30/2009 11:31:50 PM
Author: Richard Sherwood
I try to keep it private that I pack a .357 magnum.

only one? you need a backup then a backup of your backup and a backup for that.
And a 12GA in the trunk because you never know when your going to run into zombies!

 

[kama_s]

I tend to be more open with facts (such as my identity) than my deep inner thoughts. I would be more likely to post my name on a forum than mention a tiff I''ve had with my husband.

 

[Richard Sherwood]

I forgot about the zombies.

 

[strmrdr]

Date: 8/31/2009 2:20:30 PM
Author: Richard Sherwood
I forgot about the zombies.

everyone forgets about the zombies until they attack.

Funny story, a friend of mine was an instructor for the local police department.
While doing pat down training he would hide 20 guns and 15 knives on his body.
No one ever found them all on the first try and many stopped looking after the first or second.
One day he put them all on a scale and he was hiding 35+ pounds of steel on his body.
It was a lesson they could never forgot.

I wont go into his lesson on creative hiding places for handcuff keys.

 

[princesss]

Date: 8/31/2009 2:28:57 PM
Author: strmrdr

Date: 8/31/2009 2:20:30 PM
Author: Richard Sherwood
I forgot about the zombies.

everyone forgets about the zombies until they attack.

Funny story, a friend of mine was an instructor for the local police department.
While doing pat down training he would hide 20 guns and 15 knives on his body.
No one ever found them all on the first try and many stopped looking after the first or second.
One day he put them all on a scale and he was hiding 35+ pounds of steel on his body.
It was a lesson they could never forgot.

I wont go into his lesson on creative hiding places for handcuff keys.

 

[packrat]

I''m more private here..a little, I think, than on the other forums I go to. One forum is only open to membership by referral, and I''ve been posting w/them for a couple years. (Slowed waaaay down after I discovered PS tho!) They know a LOT of private stuff. Another forum I moderate at..horribly, since I''m always here. Good thing it''s pretty dang slow. I just at the time never stopped to think about the fact that there *are* crazies out there.

JD''s intimidating and he is a gun fanatic, so I don''t worry a whole lot. (haha, I say that, but really, if you knew how paranoid I am..if we had the money I''d have a panic room. Or several.)And the zombies too, of course. We keep a couple under the basement stairs for extra security.

 

[HollyS]

My name is not what you see on screen. My DH has never been named in my posts.

I''ve never mentioned the city in which I live, or the city in which I work. I''ve never been very specific about what I do; I''m a middle management hack.

This is the only sight that I have published a photo of myself. I refuse to put personal photos on Classmates.com; because I have to use my real name there.

If somebody wanted to find me, I''m sure I haven''t been careful enough. But I have made some deliberate choices, while online, to not reveal too much personal information. It isn''t that ''security'' is a big concern. It is a sense that we somehow ''know'' each other, because of what we share, that leads to speculation and assumptions about each other. I just prefer to remain a bit more of an enigma than not. And I don''t mean that to sound snooty. It''s just a preference, not an attitude.

 

[Modified Brilliant]

It''s hard to stay private when you''re a business owner but unlike Richard Sherwood, Neil, Dave
and other appraisers, you have to search a little harder to find a picture of me

www.metrojewelryappraisers.com

 

[packrat]

Jeff, maybe you guys should look into getting some zombies too, just to be on the safe side. I think you get a discount if you buy in bulk.

 

[roverchic]

The fact is that NOTHING that you post or send via the internet is private, no matter how you configure settings on websites such as Facebook, MySpace, PS and even banking sites.
My advice is this...if there is anything you wouldn''t want a stranger to know about you (or a friend or relative for that matter) do not put it online...and that includes email.

If someone is that interested / obsessed / curious about you, for as little couple hundred bucks they can pay to dig up almost any activity you have performed on the wolrd wide web...all they need is an email address. It is really scary as far as what a hacker or PI can gain access to. I believed the illusion for years that anything with a password was private, but it is not the case. I suggest that you think three times before sharing personal photos, thoughts and sensitive information on a computer.

 

[Cehrabehra]

I am about as private here as I would be with someone I met in line at the grocery who is probably far more likely to actually follow me home and rob me once they see the bling. And... even then not that private.

 

[Dancing Fire]

Date: 8/31/2009 2:20:30 PM
Author: Richard Sherwood
I forgot about the zombies.

Rich...how can you forget about the Zombies?


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49DxfpW3Zfw

 

[LilyKat]

I am more private here than I actually would be on things like Facebook. Very personal topics get discussed here (problems with partners, family members etc), and I would not want strangers (lurkers, rather than regular posters who you get to "know") to know that much about my personal life.

I''d have no problem with a stranger knowing my name, place of work and background - as long as they can''t link that to what I wear to bed and how I dry myself when I get out of the shower (to name a couple of recent threads

). So I don''t post any identifiable information.