This personal account might seem extreme, but could easily happen to anyone.I was tracked down and stalked by someone who only knew me through my social media accounts.It all started one day when I was watching a movie with my niece and got an Instagram notification. It was a private message from an individual who I did not recognize. His profile had very little information: he was from Florida and had a link to a blog. There were two photos on his profile dated years back of seemingly random objects. The message read something like ìI am here. I showed up for you. Whenever you want to meet me, I am ready.î This message was followed by coordinates that placed this person just a few blocks from where I used to live, at the park that I frequently brought my dog and often geotagged on my Instagram stories.My first thought was that the message had been misdirected, intended for someone else. But, it bothered me. Later, I did a little more digging. I realized that I vaguely recognized him. He had been a frequent commenter on a personal blog that I ran. He had initially sent me a message years ago that was similar to ìI really enjoy your writing.î To which I replied, ìThank you! That means a lot to me!î That user then sent me a dropbox link that I never opened. When I went back to this conversation and clicked on the dropbox link, I found many hours of voice messages directed to me.This person focused his messages mostly on talking about his life, like an audio diary. But, he also referenced personal aspects of my life ó places I had listed as going to on my Instagram story. There were messages that said things like ìWhat did you get at Corvus Coffee yesterday?î He must have found my LinkedIn page too, because he would ask me about my jobs. He even posted long-winded speeches about why I meant so much to him. The most shocking posts were when he talked about what ìour futureî would be like.This person had made up an entire relationship about ìusî in his head and decided it was time to meet me in person. He drove from Florida to Colorado and practically showed up at the doorstep of my previous residence. I was terrified.These last few years, as Instagram grew, I was careful on my personal accounts to never outright state where I live or give information as to how someone can find me ó or so I thought.Although I am safe and have since blocked this person from my accounts, I think it is important to acknowledge that this was a terrible and unsafe situation to be in. I thought it was harmless to post small details about myself and list the places I visited on my public profile. But, you never know who is watching and waiting for an opportunity.Even as a professional social media manager, I never considered that this kind of horror story could happen to me.Tips on how to stay safe on social mediaHere are a few tips from The National Cybersecurity Alliance to keep social media accounts safe.Make your profiles privateUse the privacy and security settings on social networks. They are there to help you control who sees what you post and manage your online experience in a positive way. Making your profile private allows only those you accept to see what you post. When a friend requests to follow you, confirm the identity of that friend. It is easy to make a false profile.Once posted, always postedProtect your reputation on social networks. What you post online stays online. If you wouldnít want your parents or future employers to see it, do not post it.Keep personal info personalBe cautious about how much personal information you provide on social networking sites. Do not publicly post about your location or share your personal information with anyone you do not know. The more information you post, the easier it might be for someone else to use that information to steal your identity, access your data or commit other crimes against you.Know what action to takeIf someone is harassing or threatening you, remove them from your friends list, block them and report them to the site administrator. If you are a minor, do not be afraid to tell a trusted adult and ask for help with the situation. It might be beneficial to go through your follower and friendsí lists and delete people you no longer know well.To learn more, visit The National Cybersecurity Alliance at https://staysafeonline.org.
