A Possible Danger to Blogging?

It has become the modern equivalent of keeping a diary in the old days. Popular among young adults and teenagers, "blogging" refers to the writing of short entries on a webpage that is posted online for others to read. These blogs may simply be about a person’s day-to-day life, or they could contain daily tips on various things. These blogs are a great tool for personal speech, but many people do not know the dangers of posting their thoughts on the internet.

One common pitfall for many new (and even experienced) blog-writers is to give away personal information on the internet. There have been countless stories of identity theft or even tragic murder, all because the victim posted private information for the world to see. We are not talking about posting social security numbers or the like; even publishing the author’s real name, birth date, or phone number makes it easy for others to obtain the rest of your information. It is not uncommon for an innocent blog-writer to brag about a valuable possession of his, and unwittingly sign the article with his real name. A thief could then easily search the name and find the writer’s address, where he could break in and steal the item.

Another common issue with blog-writers is that they have to be careful not to let their tempers get out of control. Many new writers feel a bit too comfortable behind the anonymity of the Internet and accidentally offend certain people in their posts. The angered persons may then "flame" the writer by posting rude comments in reply, or even resort to hacking the blog in order to find out private information about the author. If there is anything the horrific news stories have told us, it is that unknown people on the internet who have your personal information are usually dangerous.

It is always important to remember that there are more readers of a blog than one may think. The amount of comments written does not always provide an accurate representation, as most people simply read articles without commenting. When writing an article that is open to the public, it helps to imagine every person in the world reading your article.

Despite the dangers just described, blogging is still a safe and effective way to express one’s feelings about a topic. The Internet is a wild place, however, and new bloggers should be careful not to put themselves and even perhaps their families in danger. The first and most important rule is to never, ever put personal information on the internet. Lying about such information may be necessary at times, but it is a necessary precaution to protect against stalkers. Another rule is that if you would not say it on TV or newspapers, then don’t say it on the internet. Some groups may be more sensitive to certain words than others expect, so it never hurts to change that curse word into something milder in tone. As long as these important rules are obeyed and the writer is careful in his choice of words, then blogging can be used as an effective way to communicate your thoughts to others on the internet.