Creepy. Scary!
I walked into REI, got what I needed, saw something cool, checked-in to my Foursquare app, got my points. The next thing I know, the customer service desk is calling me over the PA saying that I need to answer a phone call, the CSR tells me it's an emergency call and the caller told him it was an emergency that I need to answer. I answer, and the man on the other line is incoherent. He tells me "this is Tom, we met last ...- oh wait-" and begins to list off places that I've checked-in that day. I tell him that I don't know him and what did he want, and he responded by telling me that he did not know me either. I hang up.
This man actively sought me out.
In the course of the next 2 hours, I change all my settings for my social network accounts and send in a complaint to Foursquare (or so I thought). I take that back, it wasn't a complaint, but more so a voiced concern- this scenario could have happened to anyone! So how do you weed the creepy trollers out?
And then comes THATGUY... he calls me out publicly on Twitter saying that my problem was how public my profile is. He is some self-proclaimed internet savy know-it-all (that b/c I am graceful, shall remain nameless). Of course!
Changing your privacy settings doesn't fix the problem, it put's a barrier (band-aid if you will) over it. The point of social media websites is to share thoughts & experiences, create a network, and expand your horizons that way. It isn't a place for lurkers to prey and stalk others. But sadly enough, once you open the door, you let the good in with the bad.
For now, taking a Foursquare break. Screw the badges and the points, I just wanted to share a part of my experiences.
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