Do not search me

When I google "Halley Rycenga," I find an assortment of information about myself. From social networking sites to newspaper articles, bits and pieces of information about myself (Halley) come together, linked by my name in text. One can learn about other people I am associated with, personal contact information, past jobs, my scholastic history, and more. However, being "googlable" or easily found with many sources/hits is not something I would like to be. For some, the idea of being present and connected to the web may give a sense of famousity but for myself it seems like a recipe for danger.

While there are some advantages to being googlable, there are many risks to being accessible through google that seem to outweigh the benefits. Perhaps I wanted to get a job and before I received an interview, the company decided to "google" me to find a little more about me. While at the present I have nothing rueful or incriminating in my past, the interviewer could associate me with people who have just by looking at social networking sites. Any bit of information on the internet could easily be misconstrued to look "bad" and give a bad impression of someone. Another risk to being googlable is making your personal contact information more accessible to the public. I do not want just anyone to know where I live, my full name, my birthdate, etc. If these small pieces of information got into the wrong hands, it could be much easier to locate me and do me harm or to steal my identity. I prefer to keep my business private to myself and others who I trust.