Do's and Don'ts!

Cyberstalking is a very serious issue, meaning that it's not a form of assault to be taken lightly. Your blog could be an instrumental tool in someone finding you out there in the real world - and it could be someone you don't want finding you.

Here is a list of blogging "dos" and "don'ts" meant to help keep bloggers safe. The list is compiled by Sharon Housely, the managing marketer of FeedForAll (an RSS feed software). She reminds all blog authors that they should have aliases, to be careful of personal content, and to avoid posting pictures. She doesn't want bloggers to disclose where they will be (at Comic-Con this weekend in LA, for example). And she wants us to keep in mind that there are readers who don't show themselves on our blogs. (Hello, all of you lurkers! How you doin'?)

What I do right: I've created an alias to post under. Well, Woody is my real live nickname, but it could be a lot of people's nickname. I've refrained from sharing too many personal details about myself. Only a few of my likes and dislikes in pop culture have made it to my "about me", and other than the school I attend, there isn't much else that would indicate where I am in the world.

What I do wrong: I posted a picture of myself. Oops. The picture might not be the most detailing photo, though; my giants sunglasses and Minnie Mouse ears sort of detract from revealing who I really am. And of course, I also revealed my school. I feel, however, that "UMaine" is ambigious enough of an area that no one would be able to come to my school and track me down. But, maybe I'm wrong. Please, no one try this!!

Plain and simple, our bloggers need to remember to blog smart. We know what's appropriate for the Internet and what isn't, and we need to remember that age does not make us immune to such dangers as being kidnapped by someone following our online activity. And being female? Makes me totally more likely to be a victim. So be careful what you say about you and your community in your blogs. Maybe the key to staying safe is pretending you're still 13, and everyone is out to get you.