With the summer season and school / college holidays in full motion, many couples, families and friends across the UK will be preparing for a well earned holiday in the UK or to travel abroad.   In light of this, this August here at SGS Systems Ltd we are particularly focusing on social media security and the concerns it may raise in terms of security and the protection of your property whilst you are on holiday.

Whether you are an avid user of social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or Snap Chat, to many UK users, Social Media is very much an ingrained part of our lives.  We all enjoy sharing pictures and stories with friends about who we are hanging out with, where we are staying and visiting, or maybe showing off a latest purchase.

However, whilst many would think that there is no harm in sharing information, it is unfortunate that some thieves make a living out of researching these types of posts by scouring our internet for profiles to find clues which could be fruitful in aiding a burglary.  This means that it is important to understand social media security and that whilst sharing your latest holiday snaps, photos like these can confirm that you are not at your home and so therefore your property is vacant.  This could prove to provide enough information and a tempting opportunity to those who are seeking to carry out a burglary.

So what is the safest way to use social media this without compromising our social media security?

1. Don’t share the recognisable flight path image from home to your holiday destination. Immediately this informs everyone that you are off on your holidays.
2. Enjoy taking your holiday snaps but share them when you arrive back home, rather than whilst you are on holiday.
3. Sharing photos can help to build a profile as to where you live. Photos which feature your house door number, street sign or your vehicle number plate could implicate your social media security.
4. Don’t share photos of expensive jewellery, your new car or your latest TV purchase which could easily build up a profile as to what you own in the property and become a focus target for a burglary.
5. Finally, check your social media security settings and that you are only sharing photos and information with friends.
6. Inform a neighbor that you are going on holiday and ask them to keep an eye on your property whilst you are on holiday.
7. Install a home security alarm and CCTV monitoring equipment with SGS Systems Ltd. Our company provides a full security review and installation service, followed by regular security support and maintenance after-sales checks so that you can be certain that your property is continually monitored and kept safe.  As an SSAIB accredited supplier, we only use industry specialist equipment which is installed by our fully trained security engineers.

   Our scale-able home security solution means that we can protect your home large or small.  For more information with regards to our property security products and services, please speak to our home security team about a FREE review of your property or see our range of security options available on our website – sgssystems.com.

Don’t forget! If you have become the owner of a new property which has an existing alarm or no longer have the contact details for the maintenance contract of your installed burglar alarm, then SGS Systems Ltd can help.  We not only install and maintain our own security systems but can also review and check your house burglar alarm, even if it has been originally installed by a different provider.  To find out more, please contact our property security team today.

Useful information:

StaySafeOnline – https://staysafeonline.org/stay-safe-online/securing-key-accounts-devices/social-media/