In our reading this week we came across an interesting infographic which explained a few startling connections between social media and crime. Some of the interesting statistics included:

  • 66 percent of active Facebook users do not know about privacy settings
  • 47 percent of teens have a public facebook profile viewable by anyone
  • 78 percent of burglars have admitted they use Facebook, Google Street View and other social media platforms to select victim’s properties.
  • 54 percent of burglard say that posting status and whereabouts on social media is the most common mistake made by homeowners.
  • The financial cost of cyber crime is larger than the black market for cocaine, heroin and marijuana combined.
  • More than 1 million people become victims of cyber crime every single day.

These statistics certainly offer some food for thought!

Do you know the status of your security settings on Facebook? Can anyone view your profile, or do you need to be friends first?

Check out the full infographic here.