The risks of smartphone and social media use without moderation are regularly highlighted in the media. It has caught politicians and celebrities derailing some otherwise promising careers. Those involved in legal proceedings, whether as plaintiffs or defendants, who are negligent about their online social media privacy are equally at risk as a result of this technology.  

A large percentage of today’s population, especially the younger generation, has no qualms about letting the public in on their private life via social networking sites. This is why insurers, investigators, and defense lawyers might try to get access to your online profiles, devices, and storage space. Careless use of social media can amount to a form of self-surveillance and be a gift to the opposing side. An experienced accident lawyer can help you understand this better.

Here are some safety measures to take before hurting yourself online:

Do not forget to save the content of current accounts. 

The destruction of prospective evidence may cause more issues than the information itself. Therefore, backing up your social network accounts with their most recent posts is crucial. Instructions on archiving your content may be found on most social networking platforms. A designated employee is responsible for ensuring that our clients are archiving their data properly.

  • Disable or stop using your social media accounts.

 Deleting their Facebook and other social media accounts is a good idea for a plaintiff in a personal injury case.  If you do not want to delete your account entirely, at least remove any references to your injuries or associated actions and refrain from making any further postings.

  • Activate the most stringent privacy settings. 

If you are not going to give up social media altogether, at least take precautions to protect your personal information. This entails restricting access to the material to only true friends, as opposed to friends-of-friends or the broader public. 

  • Be wary of anyone you think is your “friend.”  

If social media use is to continue, “friend lists” must be modified so that only desired contacts are privy to private information such as photo albums and status updates. Get rid of any “friends” you do not really know, and only add people you have met in person and can vouch for.

  • Turn invisible. 

Selecting “only friends” under the “search visibility” option in their profile settings will hide them from Facebook searches. Disabling Google indexing of your Facebook page is as simple as unchecking the “Public Search Listing” option in your account’s settings.