Why you should stop googling names for info

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When we consider risks to our online presence, there's no such thing as low stakes.

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Untoward information floating around online could cost you your dream job at minimum or compromise your personal safety in the worst case scenario. But how do you know if any of this damaging information is out there? A good place to start is with a Google search of your name.

When was the last time you Googled your own name? While a simple Google inquiry doesn't even come close to a certified background check, you'd be surprised at what could be out there on those first few pages. Self-search on Google isn't as indulgent or vapid as it may sound, and many of us do it not just to satisfy our curiosity, but rather damage control or prevention.

Related: 4 Ways to Effectively Build a Personal Brand

More than half of millennials have Googled themselves before and more than one in 10 Gen Zers do so on a daily basis. Here's a generational breakdown of who Googles themselves:

48 percent -- Gen Z
57 percent -- Millennials
45 percent -- Gen X
37 percent -- Baby Boomers

Among those who have searched their own names on Google, many are faced with information pertaining to others who share their name, with only one in five finding accurate content. Let's bear in mind that whatever we see about ourselves in Google search results is also what everyone else can see when they Google our names as well, from potential employers to sinister criminals.

In one bizarre incident, Google search results ended almost fatally. In 2004, following a gunshot injury inflicted by an unknown assailant, one Australian man came across startling -- and inaccurate -- information on Google that linked his name with local mobsters. Google auto complete filled in the blanks correlating his name with these local mobsters, as well image searches backing up this false information. This misinformation almost cost him his very life.

There are real-world consequences to what's out there about you online, even if you had nothing to do with it. It may surprise you to learn:

33 percent of Google search results are influenced by other individuals of the same name
20 percent of people find outdated or flat out inaccurate information
12 percent are "unpleasantly surprised" by what they find, though it may not be necessarily incorrect
8 percent unfortunately find embarrassing or reputation damaging information

Related: How to Get Google to Quit Tracking You

All told, 50 percent of Americans believe that their information is less secure than it was just five years ago -- and we have no one but ourselves to blame for that. Our addiction to social media and our obsession with talking about ourselves online could be our very own demise. Facebook accounts aside, Americans are known to use other online accounts to help store and manage their personal data.

On average, adults use three different sites regularly, from social media to finances to medical information. It's easy to feel safe when we "diversify" our identifying information among multiple platforms guarded by multiple passwords, but this sense of security only goes as far as our wishful thinking. Here's proof:

35 percent of adult internet users have had sensitive personal information compromised
29 percent have had an unknown person login to their email or social media account
15 percent have had their social security numbers compromised, and 14 percent have had it used to open fraudulent credit cards or loans
6 percent have even had an imposter pose as themselves to claim a tax refund

Cyber criminals are smart; smart enough to circumvent the law as well as your security measures. They know just where to look to gather bits and pieces of our identifying information online. Proudly displaying your high school or maiden name on your Facebook profile -- all easily discovered through a simple Google search -- makes those security questions on another site basically useless.

Related: Do You Know Your Risk of Cyberattack?

Pairing their information gathering with a touch of social engineering, cyber criminals can finely tune a personalized scam just for us. Email phishing is a popular and tricky scam that preys on our insecurities and fears, appealing to us with a sense of urgency that leaves us with little option but to immediately react. Red flags include inquiries for personal information sent via email, unclear or mismatched email address and domain names and requests for urgent action to resolve "problems."

Removing content from Google searches can be a complicated process, but it could mean the difference between life and death, at least in cases of Australian mobsters. From phishing to catfishing, anything we say online can, and likely will, be used against us.

Do you know what Google is showing about you? This infographic details the state of online security, where it's our responsibility to keep it under wraps, and how to manage when it gets into the wrong hands.

Many people have wondered why some people will say things that they don’t mean, simply to provoke a certain type of response from someone. For some people, when they say yes, it means no, and saying no will mean yes. Why on earth would anyone say something, when there’s no substance or true meaning behind their words? Well, many times people want others to just “get them” and know what they want, assuming that they’ll be able to read their minds or something of the sort.

Unless you’re some type of “debatable” psychic, no one can read your mind. It’s important to say what you mean, and mean what you say. Our words are very powerful, and when we say anything, we should mean it. It’s imperative to be genuine and direct when dating or in a relationship, and to never assume that people will be able to read our minds. It can be truly misleading to many people when a person plays mind games like saying the opposite thing than what they really want or mean.

The power of NOT Googling

No one should have to dig to discover who someone really is by doing research. So many people have become weary of those that merely ask for someone’s last name when having hopes to date and get to know them better. Folks, asking someone’s last name is a normal and important thing to do. If you’re going on a first date, and especially when you meet someone through online dating or social media, it’s essential to know a person’s full name. The reason that many people have nearly become paranoid in giving their last names is because many people feel the desire to “Google” them before dating.

Whether you’re dating someone that you met online or anywhere else for that matter, “Googling” someone shouldn’t be “a thing.” You shouldn’t have to Google someone before meeting. Doing research about someone before meeting them in person is usually a big sign that someone is untrusting, nosey, obsessive, afraid, impatient, or even crazy. If you want to know a person more before accepting a first date, choose to have a more in depth conversation on the telephone.

There’s no need to stalk or research someone through social media, Google, or other search engines in order to find out whatever you can about a person. It’s a much better idea to get to know who a person is by asking questions, communicating, and getting to know them first hand, as opposed to what you’ll possibly discover about them online. If you don’t trust someone that much, and you feel the need to do research on them, don’t date them, or at least, not yet. Talk to them, email them, text them, send pictures back and forth, communicate your concerns, and the person will likely be understanding and respect you more for going straight to the source, as opposed to going behind their back and looking them up.

Even if someone is more than okay with you doing research on them, you should have enough patience, self control, and willpower not to. What you may find out by researching someone may not be completely or even partially accurate, and it will likely feel incredibly invasive to the person you’re about to date. Getting to know someone takes time, patience, and great communication. When you find things out about someone online, it can cause unnecessary conflict, turbulence, discomfort, and distrust for one or both of the people, and as we all know, it’s truly better to avoid that kind of drama whenever possible.

Founder, Owner, Writer, and Editor at Anne Cohen Writes

Anne Cohen is an entrepreneur, as well as a lifestyle and relationship writer based in Los Angeles, CA. She started writing on arcwrites.blogspot.com and shortly after created AnneCohenWrites.com. She has contributed to various publications including The Huffington Post, Elite Daily, and many more. She's passionate about love, living a healthy lifestyle, writing, chess, and more than anything, her two kids.

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