s/o stalking thread: Googling names - really freaky

[Granny_Weatherwax]

I Googled myself just to see what would happen. There is way too much info out there. Not only are there three people with my name but a Goodle search revealed online condolences we had sent to friends, interviews that have been in the newspaper, college graduation notices, tennis tournament results, all kinds of stuff.

 

Makes me uncomfortable. It really does.

 

I spoke at a city council meeting once and they must have published the notes online because all of my info (including my full name and my address) are out there for everyone to see.

 

The more I think about it the angrier I become.

Edited June 30, 2010 by The Dragon Academy

[Mrs Mungo]

I have an extremely common name. Both my maiden name and married name bring up *all sorts* of things that are not me. So, I don't really worry about it.

 

About this though:

I spoke at a city council meeting once and they ,ust have published the notes online because all of my info (including my full name and my address) are out there for everyone to see.

 

 

That's a matter of public record.

[missmoe]

When I googled my name, the first two things that popped up were from facebook. #1 said, this person is on facebook and here are her friends' names. #2 was a group I had joined on facebook. Makes one think.....:glare:

[Love2Smile]

My husband is in law enforcement. We don't like this either because "bad guys" whom he has arrested etc...can easily find us. We have a very unuasual Italian last name and I am the ONLY person I find when I google myself.

 

 

We actually use alias' now online and on websites. We use a PO Box for all bills etc.. On checks we only us our first initial and last name. All credit cards, and water bills etc...we mispell our name by 2 letters.

 

We try to stay as annonymous as we can.

[MariannNOVA]

Hey, D.A. I've googled my name -- I cannot find myself. My sister is ALL over the place, but that is owing to her work. Me? Well, I guess I am really doing a GREAT job at staying under the radar.

 

 

 

 

 

Btw, who took the photo of you riding your bike?:001_tt2:

[AuntieM]

When I google my married name I find that I sell cosmetics in Australia. My maiden name shows I am married to a raving anti-Semite from France.

 

A few references to the *real* me turn up on the third or fourth page of hits. My name is not common, but if someone who hasn't been in touch with me since school were to google me, they might have a hard time deciding which info refers to this person they knew.

[Food4Thought]

I used to have an online business with a connected blog, etc. Then a few years back, I did a Google search for myself, and I was amazed at how much identifying information I had put out there for anyone to find.

 

Over the past three years or so, I've been limiting my online role, using more aliases, and altering my privacy settings where I can. The real me doesn't show up until about page 3 of Google results now, and I'm mixed in with others with the same name.

 

You *can* limit the amount of info you have out there, but it certainly takes work to disappear from teh internets. :glare:

[Jean in Newcastle]

Apparently I wrote a book that is quite popular in India!

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

Well I just googled myself and there are a whole lot of other me's out there :lol: There was 1 that was supposedly me but it had me living with my brother in law and Sister in law (which I never did) and that I was 0 years old :001_huh:

 

I googled my husbands name and the first thing that poped up was my DH on writeaprisoner.com :lol: (his name- not him) And there are over 1 million hits for his name (very common I guess LOL) So no info on us that we are worried about-- Though it did have my sister in laws name, address and correct phone number (remember- google says I live there :D)

 

 

Well after he got out of writeaprisoner.com he must have gotten a job at liberty elementary school in Mounds, Oklahoma-- Hmmm my dh working in a PS of all places--:smilielol5: (he is VERY.VERY.VERY anti-PS)

Edited June 30, 2010 by wy_kid_wrangler04

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

apparently i wrote a book that is quite popular in india!

 

:lol:

 

when i google my married name i find that i sell cosmetics in australia. My maiden name shows i am married to a raving anti-semite from france.

 

 

:lol:

[Baseball mom]

Apparently I am a Doctor...who knew? :001_huh:

[Lovedtodeath]

I am a burly man holding up a deer that I plan to have for dinner.:D

[fhjmom]

I just googled me and there were 3 pages of the real me. :001_huh:

 

I used to be quite active in the scrapbook world and had a few things published so those came up. Now I work with a statewide non-proft, so several things came up in connection to that, plus the contract work I have done for some state agencies. Then the ministry DH and are are leaders for through our church has my name connected to it.

 

It was kind of weird seeing the picture someone can get of my life now by looking through those google results.

[Truscifi]

Those Intelius people creep me out. They had me under both married and maiden names with my current addy and phone # and every place I've lived since I was a teenager. And I don't have the most common name in the world, so not a lot of others to muddy the water.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

That someone spoke at a public meeting and even their remarks may be public record, but I think that organizations and government agencies are rather quick to put the information of the general public online, especially when they would never think to put the same info online about their employees.

 

It ought to be common practice to redact things like street addresses while leaving name and city. Consider, for example, that the different department heads probably spoke at the same meeting, but their address probably didn't get listed as part of the public record.

 

At a minimum, I think that there should be a disclosure statement on the sign up sheet that informs those signing up for public comment on what will happen with their personal information.

[fhjmom]

That someone spoke at a public meeting and even their remarks may be public record, but I think that organizations and government agencies are rather quick to put the information of the general public online, especially when they would never think to put the same info online about their employees.

 

It ought to be common practice to redact things like street addresses while leaving name and city. Consider, for example, that the different department heads probably spoke at the same meeting, but their address probably didn't get listed as part of the public record.

 

At a minimum, I think that there should be a disclosure statement on the sign up sheet that informs those signing up for public comment on what will happen with their personal information.

 

I recently filed a complaint with a state agency against a business regarding disability accessibility and I just found out that they automatically send every bit of my personal information to the business owner in the complaint notice.:tongue_smilie: This includes my full home address. I was not told that when I filed the complaint so I am not happy about it at all. The only thing they redacted was my email address. :confused: I would much rather someone have my email than my physical home address. The agency said that it was public record and while that may be so, they didn't have to give it out up front without a request!

[Lilymax]

Does anyone else think this is weird?

 

I went to Intelius (I think that was the site) looking for an old boyfriend. He has a very common first and last name, and I've been unable find him on Facebook. Anyway, as I went through the list of men with his name, I saw his parents' names listed under "Known Relatives". So I am pretty certain this was him. But what was strange was that at the bottom of the list of known relatives was MY name, with a different middle initial. (My maiden name is not all that common.)

 

I am 41, and this is someone I only casually dated off and on through high school and college. He always seemed more serious about me than I was about him, but I haven't seen or heard from him since I was 20. I never lived with him, we never signed anything together...I cannot imagine why I am listed as a known relative, yet I am.

 

There's a ton of stuff that comes up when I Google myself, because I am a writer. But seeing my name on his list really creeped me out!

[Lovedtodeath]

ya'll are creeping me out. :001_huh: I will stay away from that site!:leaving:

[asta]

Does anyone else think this is weird?

 

I went to Intelius (I think that was the site) looking for an old boyfriend. He has a very common first and last name, and I've been unable find him on Facebook. Anyway, as I went through the list of men with his name, I saw his parents' names listed under "Known Relatives". So I am pretty certain this was him. But what was strange was that at the bottom of the list of known relatives was MY name, with a different middle initial. (My maiden name is not all that common.)

 

I am 41, and this is someone I only casually dated off and on through high school and college. He always seemed more serious about me than I was about him, but I haven't seen or heard from him since I was 20. I never lived with him, we never signed anything together...I cannot imagine why I am listed as a known relative, yet I am.

 

There's a ton of stuff that comes up when I Google myself, because I am a writer. But seeing my name on his list really creeped me out!

 

He may have listed you as a co-renter on a flat (even though you weren't), and the relationship was assumed. Or maybe you're listed as a inheritor.

 

 

a

[KidsHappen]

I found three places like Intellus (where you have to pay for additional info) that had me listed by my married name and every place I have lived in the 13 years before I moved to TN. No current address or phone number even though they have been the same for the past seven years. Nothing before 20 years ago either probably due to the fact that I didn't live in the US and there is no connection to my maiden name either or any of my blood relatives. There are only 21 people in the US with my first and last name and only one (me) with my same first, middle and last.

 

However, they do have some things horribly twisted. They have both my ex and my hubby as being related to me and my ex's new wife as well. They have several places that they lived that I did not being listed as places I lived and several places I lived that they did not as being places where they lived. It makes it look as if for the first five years of my current marriage I was married to both of them and living in two different places at a time. I do know how this happened. After my ex remarried, he and his new wife continued to use my name for credit purposes.

 

I did not find any other real connections anywhere else on the internet. None of the references to my name were me and I could find any connection between my board name and my real name. I do have a facebook account but it is private. There was someone else with my name that has a facebook account but it wasn't me.

 

So if you had some info on me and were willing to pay I guess you could find me but I can't imagine why anyone would want to.

 

My hubby on the other hand is all over the internet but there are also several people of his same name that are in the same fields of work and social circles so it might be hard to tease them apart.

[pooh bear]

Well, according to Google, I am either a teen fiction writer or a porn star.

 

Ummm, I never knew I lead such an interesting life! :lol:

[nono]

Apparently I am a Doctor...who knew? :001_huh:

 

Dentist here. Oh, and I knew this before she was named...my dd is a minor porn star (via google). Have had 1 or 2 men, upon hearing her name, have a reaction. Would love to get them into a poker game...

Edited June 30, 2010 by nono

[radiobrain]

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Edited June 30, 2010 by radiobrain

[mrsrevmeg]

Wow. Just went to Intelius for the first time. They have information on me that is current, including my husband's name, his parents, and some woman that we get mail for all.the.time. We have gotten her mail at TWO separate addresses. Creepy!!

[Granny_Weatherwax]

Wow. Just went to Intelius for the first time. They have information on me that is current, including my husband's name, his parents, and some woman that we get mail for all.the.time. We have gotten her mail at TWO separate addresses. Creepy!!

 

I suddenly feel less secure and a little creeped out.

 

(heebeejeebees)

[lynn]

I have a not so common first name but there are several women out there with the same first name and maiden name. The strange thing is that a couple of them live in the same state I was born. I am guessing the last name is their married name.

[mereminerals]

Since my first name is very uncommon and I'm not sure of another with my first name and married name, my name pops up all over Google. Most of it related to the events we host for our youth group and because of my business.

[Shelly in the Country]

I just Googled myself and found one comment I had made on a friend's Facebook page :confused:.

 

Most of the hits were for another person who shares my name. She is a competitive figure skater :lol:. ANYBODY who has ever known me would know that was not me.

[Giraffe]

Another "fun" thing to do is Google your online IDs (e.g., Hopscotch67). If you use an id for years, someone can determine a lot about you just from your posts in various places.

 

I think I'm going to start mixing up my online names now. :leaving:

[Parrothead]

Those Intelius people creep me out. They had me under both married and maiden names with my current addy and phone # and every place I've lived since I was a teenager. And I don't have the most common name in the world, so not a lot of others to muddy the water.

This is me. I am concerned, but have no idea what to do about it.

[Doodle]

Hey, D.A. I've googled my name -- I cannot find myself.

 

 

I'm nowhere to be found either. Many others with the same name, but nothing is me.

[Perry]

I'm a Cuban spy, or an epidemiologist.

[Mommyof4ks]

Apparently I like tattoos and permanent make-up lol. There are only a couple of things about the real me on there.

[Mrs Mungo]

There are multiple people on that site with both my married and maiden names. I'm on there (addresses, relatives, etc), but so are other people.

[MorganClassicalPrep]

LOL, I am apparently an extremely prolific porn star. There are 6 pages of that, and at the very bottom of the sixth page there are two listings for a doctor me, and then at least 6 more pages of the porn star me. :D I'm a busy, busy girl!

[Meriwether]

I looked up my husband's name. The first hit was him. The rest were in a different language. After checking a couple of the sites, I've decided his name must mean "really fancy underwear" in whichever language that is.

[Nicole M]

Apparently I am a Doctor...who knew? :001_huh:

 

I'm a doctor, too, in Germany! I deliver lots of papers at conferences. :D

 

ETA: Holy cow! On page two of Google is a link to a commentary I did for our NPR station in 2001. I thought that was lost forever!

Edited July 1, 2010 by Nicole M

[3littlekeets]

If you think Intelius is bad, check out spokeo.com it will really wig you out!

[hornblower]

I have a really common last name & what used to be a common first name.

 

First google hit for my name is a wiki entry for a popular jazz singer & comedienne in the 20's. A real smashing 20's gal! Never heard of her - now I want to buy a record!

[DarlaS]

Wow. Just went to Intelius for the first time. They have information on me that is current, including my husband's name, his parents, and some woman that we get mail for all.the.time. We have gotten her mail at TWO separate addresses. Creepy!!

 

So it's like you have this invisible non-paying tenant? Weird.

[DarlaS]

Wow, that NYT article from 1999 is STILL on the web! Other than that, just facebook posts and occasional forum posts.

[milovany]

I haven't had any issues with strangers "finding" me online and "watching" me -- but I have relatives who apparently do searches for my name and keep tabs on me this way. :seeya:

 

So keep that in mind, too, when it comes to the privacy issue.

[stripe]

Another "fun" thing to do is Google your online IDs (e.g., Hopscotch67). If you use an id for years, someone can determine a lot about you just from your posts in various places.

 

I think I'm going to start mixing up my online names now. :leaving:

Good idea. I once found a lady who posted something that made me think we'd have something interesting in common, but then I found all these posts about her unfaithful husband and I thought....maybe not! Who needs that drama?

 

I've found other people posting using other online IDs I use (not this one!). I don't know what to think.

 

Then again, some people seem confused enough in real life. Do you know, some guy has my phone number down on his resume? I've gotten so many phone calls for setting up interviews. And he set up the number with Yahoo, so that I can get a text message with his password if I wanted to. Lucky for him, I don't care to ruin his life.

 

I googled my midwife at one point and it suggested she had another, er, career (dealing with anatomy in another fashion, if you get my drift).

[smrtmama]

When I Google myself, I get books and articles I've written. Since I publish under my legal name, I expect it to be out there and available. Second hit on my first name and married last name yields a video clip from when I was on Good Morning America. I get that, my Facebook, other stuff. What I don't get is any of my homeschool stuff, because THAT is all under a pseudonym. :)

 

ETA: However, I am NOT the witch (actual witch, not starts with B and rhymes with witch) that comes up when you search my name. That isn't me, y'all.

Edited July 1, 2010 by smrtmama

[yslek]

I found a number of mes, none of them me. :D Under my maiden name, I found an article listing me as a National Merit Semifinalist. Apparently, I was only one of two at my large high school. :001_huh: Everything else was not me. When I googled dh, I found lots of people who are not he. Most of them are MDs or DDSs...kind of funny as dh used to aspire to be a pediatrician. Spokeo has some pretty inaccurate info about us; it makes me :lol:.

[Desert Rat]

I just googled my name and I came up as a listing for my address (public record) and that I commented on an artist friends website. Also that I belong to my elementary school's alumni organization. No biggie.