I have periodically found it amusing to Google search myself. However, when given the task as an assignment for class, especially after studying digital citizenship, I was more than concerned about what potentially would pop up.
I typed my name in, held my breath, and hit the search button. At first relief washed over me. Most of the first links that popped up had nothing to do with me. Although I did find it strange that there was someone out there with the same exact name as me. However, as I scrolled my anxiety grew. I found my facebook page, instagram, there were pictures from me from middle school all the way up to my most recent facebook profile picture. I found both of my twitter accounts, my perfect attendance from my eighth grade year, and even my wedding registries. (Both of my wedding registries I had set to private, by the way.) I was slightly mortified. Some of these things I was sure were “private”. It was then that I realized that once again, nothing on the internet is private.
This in turn sparked my interest. I decided to Google my fiance’s name. There were pictures of his wrestling matches, videos of his matches, articles written about him in a newspaper. I found his youtube channel and his school email. It was insane to me the fact that I could find out so much information from one simple Google search. This is a terrifying fact. Who else knows this stuff about me? More importantly what will they do with the information they find? On the flip side, employers are also incredibly capable of finding me and everything I have said, done, posted, tweeted, etc.
Lesson of the day; be cautious about what you or others post about you, you never know where it can be seen.
Miss Rundquist's Blogging Ventures 
I felt very similar anxiety when I Googled myself yesterday. Like you, I also, was led to Google others and found some things unsettling and other things that stirred pride in my heart. I know without a doubt that we are living very public lives and the more physically isolated many citizens become the more of a digital foot print they leave behind. I am looking forward to passionately teaching digital citizenship after this module.
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I felt the same way, and was glad that there was not that much to see. I would hope that an employer would find my online activity acceptable. I know nothing is really ever private on the internet, but I would prefer to set my profiles to private as well. Not only for strangers, but also there are just plenty of people who I know that don’t have any business knowing what is going on in my life.
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I agree with what you say about nothing really being private. Sometimes I feel like websites will auto check that box to make something public, or squeeze it in in tiny letters at the bottom! So deceitful. Those websites aren’t looking out for you, they just want to make a buck off your email address. It’s important to be conscious just like you said.
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Yes, I agree! I have noticed lately that many of the things I search on google or on amazon begin popping up in the sidebars and adds on sites like Twitter or Facebook. It is scary how much they know and what they will do to make money.
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