A couple of years ago, famous TV host Jimmy Fallon impersonated Chris Rock while he had a full face of brown makeup. He didn’t mean anything wrong by what he did, and he apologized multiple times, but people thought it was racist. That wasn’t bothering Chris because they are good friends, and it was obviously a joke, but regardless, it all stays online. Famous persons can quickly apologize and move on with their lives, but anyone can find it even after a few years if one of us makes a nasty comment. Anyone can search our social media past and judge us by it, even if they were written when we were young and dumb – it could ruin our long wanted job position and similar stuff.
Things you agreed with a couple of years ago may not be the things you agree with today – or the opposite. So when you commented, and you forgot about it – the Internet didn’t! Everyone leaves their digital prints behind. Also, stuff that wasn’t offensive a year ago could become offensive tomorrow; you never know, it is hard to guess. Also, people can go through things you have liked in the past and turn that against you. People could find any data on Google and use them, but the good thing is that we can permanently delete them. There are a few social media networks that you should visit and check before applying to your desired job position.
YouTube comments
Every comment you ever make can easily be found on Google, so everyone should be careful of the posted content. Any nasty comment could make you look like the wrong person, and no company would like to ruin their reputation. So everyone should revise their YouTube comments and check the comment history.
Facebook behavior
Every like or dislike can be used against you. Anything these days can become offensive, and if you liked something offensive – you and your loved ones could be attacked. You should check your Facebook history also because important stuff like finding a good job could be a problem if your coworkers find some information about you that you wouldn’t like to share with your boss.
Twitter content
Many people have lost their jobs because they expressed their opinions on Twitter about important themes, like politics or shared company secrets. They wrote bad stuff about their boss and openly hated their job. That could stop you from being successful because most employers check the social media past of their potential new hires. So all our past tweets should be thoroughly read and checked because you never know who can read them.
Do a google search if you are unsure
Hackers have always used Google to find important information because the most relevant information is shared on social media, like birth date, pet’s name, birthplace. Any personal information that could be used for identity fraud. You can always Google your name and find stuff that you think shouldn’t be online, and you can delete it.
What to do if the content is archived?
If an old forum you participated in a long time ago is no longer active but is still indexed on Google, you should find your way to access your old account. You cannot often delete your entry information, but it’s essential to change your data on your profile so others can not associate it with you.
If you aren’t comfortable shouting something through your window or something that your boss or coworkers wouldn’t like to hear, you shouldn’t post that kind of stuff on social media either. Any personal information online could be used by hackers and can lead to identity theft or used by a jealous coworker who would like to kick you out of the company. Antiviruses protect us from hackers, but they can not protect you from stupid content you posted years ago. So all of us should check our social-media past and get rid of the unwanted stuff.
