I have a dilemma and hope that those of you who read my blog can help sway me one way or the other. I do ask everyone who wants to comment to do so. I know I read many blogs and keep my thoughts to myself because I think, "Oh they don't care to here from me." But on this I ask you to help me wade through my craziness. Oh, and please feel free to be honest.
So here goes... I had a friend recently make her blog private and her reasoning got me thinking whether I should do the same. She had a good friend who has a blog much like mine. Nothing risky or bad just something to keep family updated and to capture the memories of her children. Well a man who was searching for bad things on the Internet was linked to her blog through a search he did, even though her blog was clean. The other crazy thing is that you can find my blog my simply googling Kev's name or mine and that kind of creeps me out. I started this blog so my family can keep in touch and see my kids grow up. It is also a way for me to journal about our crazy lives. I knew people that I didn't really know could read it but figured there was no harm. Heck, I'm an admitted blog 'stalker' myself. It has been nice to stumble across a blog and see how other people do things. Plus it has been a way to see old friends and even find new ones. So I ask myself what's the harm, am I being paranoid to much?
So do I change my kids names to code names and be vague about specifics that could bring creeps to my house? Or do I go private and feel good that only the people I want are reading about my boring life?
The more I think about it the more my crazy paranoia kicks in. I have issues with silly things like should my kids walk to the bus stop by themselves or ride the bus to school. (All which will start in seven months) I struggle because I don't want to be over protective and sheltering but at the same time the world today is not like it was when we grew up. And for that reason I think that you can't be to careful about some things.
So lets discuss. I really want to hear what you all have to say.
11 comments:
My husband really wants me to go private, but I am having a hard time deciding. I don't give any info on what city I live in or what school we go to. I can't think of a way that anyone could find us if they tried. Maybe I am being naive. I like the fact that my friends and family that don't have blogs can look us up. It is a real hassle to create a google sign in name and password. I know if I didn't have a blog, I wouldn't want to go to the trouble of looking on someone's blog for updates. I don't know...that is what I think.
Check out your environment. Check and see how many sex offenders live in your area. Know your neighbors. there is a slim chance that someone from out of state is going to drive accross the country to find you. Be prayerful and so those things you know allow the spirit to guide you. He will prompt you if something is not right. If you feel that you only want family to be apart of your blog then make it so. Candace and Jonathan Evans are secure. I tried to visit them through Sara Hamlin's site and could not and I'm her Aunt. So you decide and we will follow your wishes.
I feel so much more at ease now that we are private. It's really not that hard for anybody to access your blog after you go private. You enter ANYBODY's email address and they can get on with out much hassle. They DON'T have to have a blog. I think it's a small price to pay to feel totally comfortable. It's not even just the fact that someone may find us, because that is ulikely. I just feel "invaded" just thinking of some sick-o out there looking at my kids' pictures. I don't know. That's just my two cents. Anybody that really loves you and wants to continue to keep tabs on you is going to be willing to take an extra 5 seconds to look at your blog.
I recommend going into your blog settings and double checking that you are not listed in their listings and search engines can't find you. It's on the "Basic" tab in Settings. These settings make me feel better about things. Plus I don't use our last name or city. It's your choice. Ours isn't private, but I added a counter to it, and only get 5 hits a day - and I know they are family. There are also ways to tell where your hits are coming from. If you decide to go private, don't forget to invite us! We'd hate to miss out on all the family fun!
Well, even though we had this discussion in person, I'm adding another 2 cents. I think that if you are worried enough about it, you should go private. I'd say about a quarter of the blogs I check are private and it's not really all that much hassle. Just give everyone a fair warning you are doing so so that they can email you for an invite. Blog stalkers (at least normal ones) included!
You have to do what you are comfortable with. My blog is way too open and I rely mostly on the fact that I live in the middel of freaking nowhere, but I did have a bit of a panic attack when those two kids in Idaho got kidnapped and their whole families were murdered adn the dude just saw them playing from the highway and went and took them. I haven't had any problems so far in 7 years, but that doesn't mean some creep isn't waiting for my kids to be alone sometime...
The privacy settings do help, I think, and so does being vague (like not listing your city or surname ). Good luck with that!
PS: We got your thank-you note--You're welcome! I am soooo glad that the dresses fit and so glad that adorable Ryley has them instead of the consignment store! :)
I've actually been thinking about going private as well. You just never know. I have changed my settings and I have a site meter (counter) on my blog that shows the number of hits and the city, state they looked at it in and also if they clicked on our link through another site. I look at it all the time and can pinpoint where MOST of the hits come from but there are always those unknowns that freak me out a little.
I hate to be the devil's advocate, but I don't necessarily think that you should make your blog private. There is no excuse to be stupid about your blog, though. Don't post your address or phone number, or even the name of your town if you don't want to. I'm not worried because "Tucson, Arizona" doesn't really help creeps out much. Who cares if a stranger looks at your pictures? As long as they can't find you...here is part of the reason that I haven't made my blog private, as well as part of the reason that I allow my blog to be searchable. Its by Elder Ballard. http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/news-releases-stories/apostle-urges-students-to-use-new-media
I'm a bad person to ask because I really don't get paranoid about things like this. I guess if my kids were as cute as yours though I'd be worried too! I really do like it though when people I know find my blog...and if it was private, that would block out a ton of people. Good luck on your decision.
I have been on both sides and see the benefits and downfalls. Well there aren't really downfalls per say but just annoyances I guess. Let me offer a suggestion - which you may have already done. Under your 'settings', go to 'basic', change the answers to "Add your blog to our listings?" and "Let search engines find your blog?" to NO. This should prevent people from being able to find your blog by just typing in your name into the search engine. Let me know if that works. I used to have mine private so I could persuade you either way :)
Obviously, you are worried about this. Before you make yourself postal, check out some of the precautionary tools that blogger offers like comment moderation, site meter or just make it private. Take it one step at a time, and if you still feel the need, invite only those who you know and feel comfortable with. One extra step of logging in is not going to detour the ones that truly care from visiting and commenting. By the way, where do you get a site counter? I would like to get one of those. Also, don't publish anything questionable in content that would appeal to anyone you don't want looking.
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