Personal information about your divorce is exactly that –  personal! It should not be out there for the world to see.

I hear all the time about how careful people think they are with the information they post on their Facebook page. Even if you have set your privacy setting to Friends Only, there is a chance that somewhere along the line you have friended someone that you barely know or perhaps never even met. Do you really want to share this kind of information with them?

Stop and think about how many “friends” you have on Facebook and if you believe they all have your best interest at heart?

Do you have over 25, 100, 500, 1,000?  Whatever your magic number is, are these your real true friends and do you want them to know the most intimate details of your life?

Your divorce is between you and your spouse.

There is NO need to expose yourself, him or your family publicly with any of your reasons or disagreements behind the divorce.  Remember, everything that hits the internet is out there and cannot be pulled back in. Anything that you write can be a source of information and possibly used against you during the divorce.  Also, potential employers, credit companies and insurance companies can and do look at social media sites. It gives them an idea of spending habits, lifestyles habits, etc.

I admit it, I find social media thrilling. I want to have as many people on LinkedIn, Twitter followers and my Facebook as possible. But I also know that we need to be careful in how we use these social networking sites.

For security reasons, social media experts say there are certain things we should never post. Here is just a few of them, but it gives you an idea of how careful we all need to be:

• Your full birth date and city of your birth. Apparently professional identity thieves can build your social security number based on this information alone.
• Your mother’s maiden name. This is often the answer to security questions on a lot of different sites like banking, credit card accounts, wireless accounts, etc.
• Your home address or photos of the inside layout of your home. This could be used as a blueprint by a potential robber.
• The dates of your vacations. It means that your home is most likely going to be empty during this time leaving it vulnerable.

Between reality television and celebrity media, it is all too easy to get wrapped up in the attention and the excitement of it all. But, slow down and think about the long-term ramifications and when in doubt, Do Not Post It!