‘Work from home’ coronavirus policy is a blessing with a hidden risk

So, the coronavirus has you working from home. If you’re not careful, however, this pandemic silver lining might just rain all over your one-person parade. 

Say you’re fortunate enough to have some flexibility when it comes to where, exactly, you do your job, and you feel like sharing your newfound circumstances with the world via a photo of your neatly arranged WFH setup. But hold that thought, as you might be opening yourself up to a world of privacy-invading hurt. 

The internet has been flooded in recent days with photos of people’s desks, couches, gardens, or whatever personal space they happen to be occupying at that particular WFH-moment. Often, those pics show open computers, browser tabs, sticky notes, or even Amazon Chime Personal Meeting IDs clearly visible. 

While most of these photos are harmless, there is the potential for bad actors to seize on information inadvertently contained in the pics. Or, at the very least, you could open yourself up to some serious embarrassment (remember the Kurt Eichenwald tentacle porn incident?). 

And, yes, this advice may seem sort of obvious, but it’s not just passwords you need to be concerned about mistakenly sharing. Photos of the interior of your house with young family members in the background, or of you working from Hawaii for the month all reveal more about your personal life than it may be wise to share with strangers. 

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So, feel free to share work-from-home pics online as you search out digital camaraderie in these social-distancing times. Just, ya know, make sure to remove any password-containing sticky notes, important docs, or children from the frame first.

That way, you can focus on staying healthy instead of worrying about your digital privacy.