For those who missed it, Kim Kardashian was robbed of about $10 Million in jewelry last week and there have been lots of mixed emotions and statements coming out about it. First off, if you don’t feel bad for her, you are just being rude. What she experienced was horrible and traumatic and no one deserves that (I’m looking at you France).
A lot of people are coming out and saying “if you show your wealth, you can’t be surprised when people want to share it too” (cough Karl Lagerfeld). I think that is hard to say about a woman who gained and has sustained her fame and wealth through baring it all on social media. Nonetheless, there are lessons she will learn from this, but beyond that, there are lessons we all can take away from this.
Kim Kardashian has a massive social media presence but those of us with much smaller footprints still share a lot as we look to grow our fashion, travel, and lifestyle blogs. You can’t build your blog or “brand” without sharing yourself by discussing what you are doing, where you are going, and what you are wearing, but there are smarter ways than others to handle this. Here are some of my tips for staying safe while staying true to your goals.
Tips for Staying Safe on Social Media
Blog/Insta/Snap AFTER you are gone
It can be tempting to want to snap that meal or add the photo and tag it to your instagram and facebook the second before you take a bite but it is smarter if you wait until you have left until you post it. When we are at a festival or at dinner, I like to put my phone on airplane mode and take all the snapchats and instastories I want because they won’t upload until I am back on the network. This way, if someone is watching my story and wants to show up where I am, I will already be gone.
With a blog post this is easier because you probably want to edit some shots before posting but even if I have a chance to post during a weekend getaway I will hold off until we are back home because I don’t need people knowing that we are away from home. “Today in Brussels” is a lot more telling than “Last week in Brussels.”
My instagram is more thought-out and curated these days and I mix up my posts with older shots from trips (for the EXPLORE of Love Laugh Explore) as well as the outfit posts. I rarely post an instagram the same day I take the photo and I don’t post it from the location I take it in if I do for the same reasons I mentioned.
Be a little vague
In a lot of my outfit pictures on Instagram, I post general areas for the geo-tags. Geo-tags arent necessary but they do increase the accessiblity of your photos which I am trying to do as I build my blog/instagram. If you don’t need them, don’t use them. Otherwise be a bit vague – perhaps just the city you were in. Sometimes if the background is totally nondescript I will use a different city than it was taken in anyways. Unless you are in a restaurant for a meal photo or another location where specifics matter, try and be a bit more vague. Same thing for Facebook – if what I am posting doesn’t need a location for value-added, I make sure the location function is turned off.
Pay attention to what is in your photos
Sometimes you may not even realize what you are posting has some sort of important information or other details about you. I don’t ever post anything about what I do for work so if I had a photo with something related to work in it I would be very annoyed with myself. Think about what you may not want people to see and keep it out of the shot (ie credit cards or anything with your address on it).
Use the Privacy Settings
I have my Facebook privacy settings set pretty high, and I have the two-part verification activated on Instagram so that if anyone logs into my insta they need a second code that I have as well. These functions help keep your accounts safer but the reality is hacking is so advanced these days that if anyone TRULY wanted your account, they could very likely get it. That is why I also don’t post or send personal information via messages. I also don’t use my full name on anything which I have always felt helps a bit.
Ultimately, if you are going to share on social media you are opening yourself up to some risk. It may not be $11M heist risk but it is there nonetheless. As long as you follow these (and any other tips you know) to maintain control of your most personal information, it should help you to stay safe. The lesson here is not that we cannot share, but that we must be very aware of how and when we share.
Xx
Kali
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