As someone who is an avid user of social media, one of the things you should recognize is that your social media could be used against you if you go through a divorce. Anything you say or do online can be collected as evidence. Your past posts, too, could give your spouse some leverage during your divorce depending on what you posted.
Instead of worrying about your social media during a tumultuous time in your relationship, the better option may be to shut down your accounts. Many social media platforms allow you to disable your accounts temporarily, so you can avoid using them now but open them back up after your divorce has been finalized.
Can’t shut down your social media? Be careful about what you leave posted
If you are unable to shut down your social media for any reason, such as if you use it for work, then you may want to consider a few helpful tips to minimize the risk of the account being used against you. Some things to remember include that:
- You can unfollow, unfriend and block users who you don’t want to have looking at your page. For example, your ex-spouse’s friends or family could be blocked. This isn’t foolproof, but it may help minimize the risk of your data reaching the other party.
- You should avoid vague-booking. This is when you make vague references to the divorce or post something negative that could refer to it.
- You should closely monitor your relationship status. Until you are actually divorced, you are only separated. It’s a better option just to keep your relationship status set to married until your divorce is finalized.
- Social media goes both ways. You can also collect information from your ex-spouse’s social media, but it is best not to stalk them or make it apparent that you’re doing so.
Social media has the potential to be helpful or hurtful during a divorce. For most people, the better option is to disable those accounts until the divorce is finalized, so there is no extra disk of digital information leaking or being used against them.
