04 Apr 2011
Posted by Miriam O'Neill 
Amid increasing reports that the monitoring of social media sites is becoming standard practice for burglars, AA Home Insurance can reveal that 10% of respondents of its latest poll admitted to sharing their travel plans via a social media site. A further 8% of those surveyed by AA Home Insurance said someone else within their household had naïvely told the world via social media that the family home was about to be unoccupied for a spell.
The poll also highlights a widespread culture of carelessness among younger users. 42.6% of 17 to 24 year olds who participated in the poll admitted to indiscriminately broadcasting their travel plans and the AA fears this may be even higher among younger teens. Following this, 25.9% of 25 to 35 year olds said they were guilty of the same.
The findings of the AA Home Insurance poll also suggest that women are more likely to share their whereabouts on social network sites than men. 13.9% of women compared with 7.1% of men surveyed confessed to publishing such information.
“We are encouraging people to be careful.” says John Farrell, Commercial Director of AA Insurance. “We do sensible things like cancelling milk deliveries and asking a neighbour to keep an eye on the house while we are away. But at the same time many people are casually telling the world that no-one will be at home for the next week or fortnight, which is a bit like putting out a virtual welcome mat on the internet. It’s not just the homeowners, and you also need to remind the kids to be a bit more sensible.”
“We particularly urge Smart phone users to consider the security risks when “checking-in” to location-based social media services such as ‘Foursquare’ and the newly launched ‘Facebook Places,’” says Farrell. “While you might enjoy sharing your location with friends and picking up handy geo-specific information, you could also be tipping burglars off that you’re not home. Even more importantly, users should never list their home as a location when checked into any of these services.”
As the complacent culture of sharing everything and anything via social networks persists, the AA predicts that social media usage could influence home insurance premiums in the not too distant future. “When sourcing a home insurance quote, homeowners could find themselves being asked whether they’re active on social networking sites as well as whether or not they have security locks and an approved intruder alarm installed.” Says Farrell. “Homeowners whose properties are burgled having let their holiday plans slip online may even see a knock-on effect on their subsequent home insurance premiums.”
“Social media is fast becoming a major research tool for burglars and an ill thought out tweet could end up costing you thousands.” warns Farrell. “Last September, police in the American state of New Hampshire arrested a burglary ring who had targeted over fifty homes having learnt they were unoccupied through Facebook. In some of these cases, it was children or teens who had unwittingly advertised this information so it’s especially important to educate children of the risks.”
AA Home Insurance offers the following additional security advice for social media users:
- Don’t accept friend requests from people you don’t know.
- Review your security setting, to restrict access to your personal profile information.
- Use private DM or inbox facilities to communicate private or potentially sensitive messages.
- Never post your mobile number or home address on social media sites.
- Remove wall postings from friends that may allude to your travel plans.
- Remember that when you join a social media group, thousands of people could potentially have access to your profile unless you adjust your security settings.
- Don’t boast about the expensive new flat screen TV you’ve just bought online.
Ends
Notes to the editor;
Fig. 1 Whether or not respondents have ever publicized on a social media site that they are going on holidays/will be away from their home
(A) ALL RESPONDENTS (14,116 responses)
| Yes, I have done so myself | 10.0% |
| Yes, my partner has done so | 3.7% |
| Yes, my child/children have done so | 3.4% |
| Yes, my house mate has done so | 0.9% |
| No, I/we have never done so | 85.0% |
(B) MALE RESPONDENTS (8,045 responses)
| Yes, I have done so myself | 7.3% |
| Yes, my partner has done so | 4.7% |
| Yes, my child/children have done so | 3.3% |
| Yes, my house mate has done so | 0.8% |
| No, I/we have never done so | 87.1% |
(C) FEMALE RESPONDENTS (5,881 responses)
| Yes, I have done so myself | 13.9% |
| Yes, my partner has done so | 2.3% |
| Yes, my child/children have done so | 3.6% |
| Yes, my house mate has done so | 1.2% |
| No, I/we have never done so | 81.9% |
(D) RESPONDENTS AGED 17 – 24 YEARS (292 responses)
| Yes, I have done so myself | 42.6% |
| Yes, my partner has done so | 10.3% |
| Yes, my child/children have done so | 1.0% |
| Yes, my house mate has done so | 7.6% |
| No, I/we have never done so | 53.3% |
(E) RESPONDENTS AGED 25 TO 35 YEARS (2,972 responses)
| Yes, I have done so myself | 25.9% |
| Yes, my partner has done so | 9.3% |
| Yes, my child/children have done so | 0.6% |
| Yes, my house mate has done so | 3.2% |
| No, I/we have never done so | 68.0% |
(F) RESPONDENTS AGED 36 TO 45 YEARS (3,717 responses)
| Yes, I have done so myself | 8.1% |
| Yes, my partner has done so | 3.7% |
| Yes, my child/children have done so | 2.3% |
| Yes, my house mate has done so | 0.4% |
| No, I/we have never done so | 87.7% |
(G) RESPONDENTS AGED 46 TO 55 YEARS (3,563 responses)
| Yes, I have done so myself | 3.9% |
| Yes, my partner has done so | 1.4% |
| Yes, my child/children have done so | 7.4% |
| Yes, my house mate has done so | 0.0% |
| No, I/we have never done so | 89.2% |
(H) RESPONDENTS AGED 56 TO 65 YEARS (2,241 responses)
| Yes, I have done so myself | 2.4% |
| Yes, my partner has done so | 0.8% |
| Yes, my child/children have done so | 3.8% |
| Yes, my house mate has done so | 0.0% |
| No, I/we have never done so | 94.2% |
(I) RESPONDENTS AGED 65 YEARS PLUS (1,107 responses)
| Yes, I have done so myself | 1.8% |
| Yes, my partner has done so | 0.7% |
| Yes, my child/children have done so | 1.6% |
| Yes, my house mate has done so | 0.1% |
| No, I/we have never done so | 97.4% |
Fig. 2 County by county split of respondents who indicated that they have ever publicized on a social media site that they are going on holidays/will be away from their home (14,116 responses)
| County | % of respondents |
| Carlow ( 142 responses) | 8.5% |
| Cavan ( 158 responses) | 9.6% |
| Clare ( 286 responses) | 9.5% |
| Cork (1,546 responses) | 9.1% |
| Donegal (206 responses) | 9.2% |
| Dublin ( 5,244 responses) | 11.0% |
| Galway ( 615 responses) | 11.5% |
| Kerry (240 responses) | 10.4% |
| Kildare (962 responses) | 9.5% |
| Kilkenny (180 responses) | 8.3% |
| Laois (172 responses) | 5.8% |
| Leitrim ( 78 responses) | 12.8% |
| Limerick ( 476 responses) | 8.4% |
| Longford (78 responses) | 10.4% |
| Louth ( 299 responses) | 7.4% |
| Mayo ( 254 responses) | 9.1% |
| Meath (658 responses) | 10.5% |
| Monaghan ( 78 responses) | 6.4% |
| Offaly (139 responses) | 15.1% |
| Roscommon ( 141 responses) | 12.1% |
| Sligo (147 responses) | 8.2% |
| Tipperary (306 responses) | 9.5% |
| Waterford ( 297 responses) | 11.4% |
| Westmeath ( 202 responses) | 12.9% |
| Wexford ( 386 responses) | 10.1% |
| Wicklow (624 responses) | 7.2% |
