Social media exploitation will spike as more smartphone users synch GPS functionality with their social media experience. By appending locations to status updates, tweets or check-ins, criminals have access to where you are in real time, and over time, your daily routines. “People should really be asking if they really should be appending their geographic location to their tweets or to their Facebook pages,” Marcus says. “Do they really want to be sharing that they’re driving to work, and naming which path they’re taking? I think user behavior becomes really important in these situations especially because it’s the users who are sharing the information in the first place.” And though it’s easy to over share, Marcus says his recommendation is for smart sharing, especially considering this attack could be more than just a digital assault.
GPS data is able to charted on a map, making it easy for criminals to pinpoint where you’re tweeting from, and even what those locations may mean to you. “Where do they work? Where do they go for coffee? Where do they live? It actually becomes very easy to track,” Marus says.