I’m not accustomed to sharing much in terms of a “personal story.” It’s a bit of a chicken and egg scenario. Maybe I don’t understand why anyone might want to read my personal story because I’ve never been on Facebook? Or maybe I’ve never been on Facebook because I don’t understand why anybody would want to know the mundane details of my life?
I do understand why some people use it. It is a great tool for small and local businesses, for staying connected with far-flung family members and friends, and getting support when there aren’t enough services where you live.
My reticence goes back to 2001, well before Facebook even existed. I was working in my University’s campus computer store, my hacker colleagues suggested that sharing information socially on the internet was incredibly insecure and just a way to scam you later on.
Later, when Facebook grew in popularity, they were adamant that the platform was going to take that personal information, turn it into a commodity and sell it to advertisers.
Several years later I finally got my first real technology job working alongside security professionals at JPMorgan Chase. “No real cybersecurity professionals use Facebook,” several said. These guys definitely knew what they were talking about, and so, I continued staying off social media.
My social media life changed slightly when I joined the cybersecurity practice of a consulting firm called Promontory Financial Group in 2015. You know how consultants are. So I ramped up my use of LinkedIn to help network in my field.
In 2017, I joined The Wall Street Journal, and they asked me to get a Twitter account. My first. I had to have someone teach me how to use it. I had to learn what a DM is and why one would “retweet.”( I still have a lot of questions about that last one.)
Be the first to comment