Strangers With Candy

pred·a·tor

n.: One that victimizes, plunders, or destroys, especially for one’s own gain. (1)

It’s rarely easy to spot a predator.  Even criminal profilers struggle with this.

Predators come from all kinds of different backgrounds, work in a variety of fields, and engage in different kinds of outside activities.

Sometimes, when a predator’s revealed, he or she is someone who was regarded as a pillar of the community.

There are many types of predators, including financial predators and sexual predators.

The mindset of a predator is difficult for the rest of us to fathom.  The whole concept of taking what you want from others, without regard for the effect on them, is alien to most of us.  It’s this inability to conceive of the danger that makes us most vulnerable.  Beyond that, one of the things that enables many predators to succeed is their uncommon ability to present themselves in ways that gain the trust of potential victims.

Often, predators attract victims by making promises for things they know the victims want or need. It’s always good to remember: 

If something seems too good to be true,

it probably is too good to be true.

Since I first started using the web years ago, many new sites and tools have come into being, making it easy to get information posted.  What isn’t always easy is controlling what happens to that information after it’s posted–and getting it off the web if you change your mind about having it there. 

All the people who tell you there’s no privacy on the web may seem like fear-mongers–but often they came by that knowledge the hard way, getting burned themselves.

It’s always a good idea to keep in mind that information you post to the web:

• may be disseminated (distributed) much more broadly than you intended; and
• may live on the web much longer than you want it to.

Password protection isn’t foolproof.  It’s also not safe to post private information and limit the view to your ’friends’, and expect it to stay within your trusted circle. 

Something you post today could be seen tonight by your worst enemy… or ten years from now by a potential life partner or employer… or fifteen years from now, by your children.  Even if you delete the page, the information very well can live on… in your friends’ (former friends’?) files, in the collections of strangers, in web archives, you name it.

I’m all for honesty in interactions, but I’m also a firm believer in the right to privacy.  Take good care of yourself–both the self you are now and the self you want to be in ten years.  Think twice before broadcasting details of your life for literally anybody to see.  Otherwise, you could spend the rest of your life living those things down.   

How many times has someone who loves you said those words? 

It’s not always easy to be careful–but it helps if you know the kinds of things of which you need to be wary.  That’s why this blog exists.

If there are additional topics you’d like to see covered here, please let me know.