Social media is a great way to stay connected to family and friends. You can share your latest experiences and adventures with those you know, love and care about. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social media platforms may have given you joy and delight since you have been on them. But if you are going through a divorce, then you should reconsider what you post and how you engage on these devices.
You can undermine your own position in a divorce by posting certain things on social media. Social media is a double-edged sword. You can share details about your life on these public platforms. But the fact that they are public platforms means that anyone on them can view your posts. They are a matter of public record, and a recent survey states that over 80% of divorce attorneys use social media posts as evidence in divorce cases.
Divorce lawyers across the country are starting to enter more Facebook posts, Twitter tweets, and Instagram pics into evidence and judges are accepting them. Your posts offer snapshots of your life, and they can be used against you.
If, for example, you are separated from your spouse and you are seeing someone at the moment, this can be used against you if pictures of you and your new romantic interest pre-date the separation. Pictures of the places you take your children and the people you associate with can also be used to weaken your case—if your spouse’s attorneys can paint said persons and places as being detrimental to the well-being of your kids.
Protect Your Case
Social media posts, instant messages, text messages, and emails can all be used as evidence in divorce court. You must assume that every message you send and picture you post is being monitored. You must assume that everyone who is in the pictures you post on Instagram will be investigated by your spouse’s Pleasanton CA divorce attorney. That is why you must exercise extreme caution in your social media engagement while going through a divorce.
To get a better sense of what you should and should not post, you should consult your Pleasanton CA divorce lawyer. The aim of a divorce attorney in Pleasanton CA is to preserve your rights and interests. A Pleasanton family law attorney can offer you a guide on how to engage on social media during your divorce.
The Most Common Advice
It is important to understand how social media works. Privacy settings do not protect you. Even if you select features that hide your posts from your ex or strangers (such as your ex’s lawyers), there are ways that they can become an unintended recipient. If you still have mutual friends in common, one of them may share your post on their feed. Or, one of your mutual friends may have “liked” your Facebook post, which will allow your ex to see it.
If you are going through a divorce, here are some tips on how to interact on social media:
1. Avoid posting about new relationships.
2. Do not post any morally dubious content. This includes pictures depicting drug use or content that contains racial slurs, profanity, or criminal activity.
3. You should avoid bragging to your ex about your new life. It will only lead to more tension and acrimony.
4. You should block your ex and in-laws that you cannot trust.
5. One of the first things you should do is change your password on your laptop and smart phone. This is just a precaution. You do not know whether your ex has figured out your password or downloaded spyware on it.
6. Disable geotagging. You need privacy now more than ever. You need not let everyone know your whereabouts at all times.
Your Pleasanton CA family law attorney can offer you more advice and guidance. You should contact a divorce lawyer in Pleasanton CA at the Tierney Law Group to help you through this difficult time.
