Your Privacy - Please take note

[Sparkles]

The pup community is a safe space where we all trust each other with our very intimate pictures and experiences. Some of us are more elaborate than others when it comes to sharing pictures, and stories, and even opinions. This is true, here on the WhatsApp groups, but also the Telegram groups, and even on Grindr and other dating platforms.

We trust that each pup here cares for the safe space and would like to keep it so. However, there are some really bad people in the world, and with merely your cell phone number, they immediately have access to your full name, ID number, E-mail address, Credit record, Debit record, all your investment information, as well as your physical home address. There are sites where you can find all this information for free, with only a cell phone number. There are some paid sites (most attorneys have access to these) where even more information is available. Once they have access to that information, they can very easily get access to your Facebook and LinkedIn details. So, my warning is this:

When you share photos of yourself, always use the expiry option and never send any pictures with your face too. The same goes for general posts you make on WhatsApp, Grinder and Telegram. If someone were to take a screenshot of something you posted and decides to send that to your friends, family and co-workers, think of how that would affect you.

Here is some extra scary news: Even if you use expiring photos, or even if you delete your message, it is really very easy to get all those deleted chats revived...

Now consider if someone uses this to blackmail you:
Firstly, never give in and pay the person. You will never be rid of the blackmailer, no matter how much he promises that it is a one-time payment.
Secondly, if someone blackmails you, take screenshots right away to have as evidence. Even though deleted chats can be revived, it still takes time and effort for normal people.
Thirdly, you should immediately report blackmail to the police. When you report it to the police, you need to take to the station a print-out of the conversation in which you were blackmailed.
Finally, even if the police refuse to open a case (blackmail is really hard to prove for a variety of technical reasons), insist on it and immediately afterwards, go to your HR and pre-emptively report the matter to them too.

Never ever share your number on dating sties unless you really, really trust the other person!