Maybe I'm paranoid....

[Ally]

but I need to ask... does it ever bother you when you see that there are 300-400 "guests" online here reading or lurking? Sometimes I start an answer with some possibly semi-identifying info like my city or type of work and then I see the number of guests and delete it. Or I think of posting a pic, even of my pets, and then delete it. I guess it's the introvert in me.

 

[Onward]

I lurked for years (five?) before I joined and posted. So I'm not surprised that so many lurk.

I told myself I wouldn't join and post until I FIREd. So it served as some incentive for me to reach my goal.

 

[kumquat]

A little paranoia is a good thing. A scotch is a good thing. A beer is a good thing..............You can have too much of any good thing.

 

[marko]

It would bother me if I didn't keep my personal info somewhat vague. Plus none of us use our real names.

Of course, 'privacy' in the age of the internet is a joke, but why make it easier for anybody?

Thought of the day: what if the government required us to report our associations, churches, names of all our friends, where/when we go on vacation, what politics we support?....yet on Facebook, people give that information freely!

 

[Dawg52]

It would bother me if I didn't keep my personal info somewhat vague. Plus none of us use our real names.

Of course, 'privacy' in the age of the internet is a joke, but why make it easier for anybody?

Thought of the day: what if the government required us to report our associations, churches, names of all our friends, where/when we go on vacation, what politics we support?....yet on Facebook, people give that information freely!

Ain't that the truth. I'm not paranoid about using a forum like this, but I have no desire to participate on something like Facebook. Or at least to the extent some people use it.

 

[Amethyst]

I am not prone to hissy-fits, but I hit the ceiling when a relative, who's the self-elected "family hub" of our large extended family, started a "family" site on FB - and encouraged someone to post a "family tree" containing the full names, maiden names, date and place of birth, childhood nicknames, names and birthdates of all children, and (naturally) mother's maiden names of living family members. Including me. Without permission.

I insisted the document be deleted from the site; and I can't find any evidence of it by using a search engine; but once stuff is out there, it's out there.

Amethyst

 

[Ally]

Yes, I see what you mean about FB! I have an account but keep everything set to private. I only have a very few friends. No one can find me by the search feature unless you are already a friend.

Amethyst, I would have a fit, too!

 

[Lsbcal]

Ally, you bring up an interesting question about guests. When I went to this thread there were only 4 guests and 5 regulars online here. If one does not login they see an awful lot of advertising on this site. There are even Google ads inserted into some of the individual posts. So I cannot imagine why someone would remain outside for long just lurking.

There are millions of honest internet users out there. And a few with bad intentions.

It is wise to not mention too many money based personal details here.

 

[NW-Bound]

“Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they aren't after you” ― Joseph Heller, Catch-22

In a concurrent thread, we have been discussing how this forum has a high concentration of INTJ types. I reported my finding that Ted Kaczynski was an INTJ. Not trying to scare anybody or anything, I am just sayin'...

 

[bbbamI]

but I need to ask... does it ever bother you when you see that there are 300-400 "guests" online here reading or lurking? Sometimes I start an answer with some possibly semi-identifying info like my city or type of work and then I see the number of guests and delete it. Or I think of posting a pic, even of my pets, and then delete it. I guess it's the introvert in me.

I've yammered on for over five years on this forum. I've also included pics as well.

It doesn't bother me.

We all have to remember, this is an internet forum. All advice, experiences and pics have to be taken with a grain of salt.

Ally...you need to do what makes you feel comfortable. That is what matters.

...or you can do like me. On occasion, I post a pic of my little friend...

 

[W2R]

I lurked for years (five?) before I joined and posted. So I'm not surprised that so many lurk.

I told myself I wouldn't join and post until I FIREd. So it served as some incentive for me to reach my goal.

Like you I lurked for about 4 years, but that was only now and then. I originally saw a link to this forum on Morningstar's Vanguard Diehards or whatever it was called back then. My reason for not joining was that I was looking for a really good general retirement forum, not an early retirement forum (but didn't find one that I liked so eventually I gave up and joined).

Honestly I don't know how I ever put up with the ads. If you don't log in, they are awful. Maybe they weren't so bad back then. Oddly, quite a few of our members apparently browse the forum without logging in.

 

[Gumby]

. On occasion, I post a pic of my little friend...

That's one intimidating bear you got there.

 

[REWahoo]

Is that a right arm bear?

 

[tmm99]

Yeah, I get a little paranoid myself. I feel like I've given enough information here that if someone I know reads all my forum posts, he/she could probably figure out it's me. (Maybe my tactic should be to write a bunch of meaningless posts so this person won't be able to go through all my posts... Wait! Most of my posts are in fact pretty much meaningless already!)

 

[W2R]

Is that a right arm bear?

Yes, I think she is saying that in this country, we have the right to arm bears....

 

[braumeister]

For safety's sake, be sure to use sunscreen on those bare arms.

 

[NW-Bound]

I don't know why people keep bringing up, er, bears to prove something. Don't you ever sleep? If you are really paranoid, I hope you have a partner to take turns sleeping and standing watch. Never let your guard down, I tell ya.

Anyway, I often surf without logging in. If I am logged in, I tend to post a lot more often. And if I post, then I will have to check in more often to see if anyone replies. It tends to take a lot of my time, and I need to do other things.

And then, and then, there are those who surf but with their cloaking device turned on. Yes, I am talkin' to you, you lurkers who know who you are.

 

[Alan]

And then, and then, there are those who surf but with their cloaking device turned on. Yes, I am talkin' to you, you lurkers who know who you are.

Yep, plenty of Klingons and Romulans looking for advice on this site.

 

[NW-Bound]

PS. I am also including those who log on but turn on the cloaking feature in their User CP. They do not know that I have superhuman vision and can see them clearly as day.

 

[bbbamI]

That's one intimidating bear you got there.

Is that a right arm bear?

Yes, I think she is saying that in this country, we have the right to arm bears....

Methinks Teddy is ambidextrous. However, he's not that intimidating as he has no thumbs.

 

[rescueme]

Methinks Teddy is ambidextrous. However, he's not that intimidating as he has no thumbs.

Hey, Teddy is the name of one of my Sheltie rescue dogs (thus the "rescueme" name).

He has "nails" - no thumbs, - no, "something".

And as a rescue (6 years old currently), but rescued/nutered at the age of 3, he still is "imitidating" to most dogs (including our "old gal" of 10).

Sounds a bit like me - "I'm not as good as I once was, but I'm good once as I ever was"...

Yeah, I include myself in that statement...

 

[Gumby]

I have often thought that if my cats had thumbs, they would be truly dangerous.

 

[Purron]

And then, and then, there are those who surf but with their cloaking device turned on. Yes, I am talkin' to you, you lurkers who know who you are.

.

 

[Nords]

but I need to ask... does it ever bother you when you see that there are 300-400 "guests" online here reading or lurking? Sometimes I start an answer with some possibly semi-identifying info like my city or type of work and then I see the number of guests and delete it. Or I think of posting a pic, even of my pets, and then delete it. I guess it's the introvert in me.

It would bother me if I didn't keep my personal info somewhat vague. Plus none of us use our real names.

"Security through obscurity."

The reality is that it's not about you. It's not about me. Nobody cares specifically about you. It's about the lurkers (and the readers and the posters) making virtual societal connections by vicariously enjoying the stories & photos about other humans. But as for actually getting up off their assets and doing something about it... you're far more likely to be accosted by a family member or a neighbor than by someone who's lurking here. Worrying about lurkers on this board is like worrying about a lightning bolt coming down out of that cloud over there. Or, wait-- maybe that one!

The experts advise retirees to maintain a healthy social circle. For what it's worth, forums like this are my healthy social circle. Heaven help us all.

-- Doug Nordman (as far as you can tell.)

I am not prone to hissy-fits, but I hit the ceiling when a relative, who's the self-elected "family hub" of our large extended family, started a "family" site on FB - and encouraged someone to post a "family tree" containing the full names, maiden names, date and place of birth, childhood nicknames, names and birthdates of all children, and (naturally) mother's maiden names of living family members. Including me. Without permission.
I insisted the document be deleted from the site; and I can't find any evidence of it by using a search engine; but once stuff is out there, it's out there.

It's also been publicly available for years through genealogy websites & archives, to say nothing of the LDS church. If you haven't already, set a Google Alert for your name (in quotes) like "Amy Smith" or "Susan Maidenname". It's very interesting to see what pops up.

The reality is that we can manage our online presence in two ways. We can take control of it by publishing the information that's more credible and more likely to appear at the top of the search engine results. Or we can remain mute and let someone else control our online presence by posting unrelated, misleading, or downright incorrect info. Most of the info that appears when Googling me was created & published by me, and it fills up the top of the search results. So you're unlikely to ever see those photos where I and the rest of the... well, never mind.

But discovering our personal information online becomes much more objectionable when it's shoved in our faces, perhaps served up with an advertisement or two.

 

[Purron]

... you're far more likely to be accosted by a family member or a neighbor than by someone who's lurking here.

Not to mention the Killer Rabbit of Caerbannog