When it comes to divorce, it is important to be aware of what you do and don’t share during the proceedings. You need to be cautious of what you discuss on social media, how you talk to friends and family, and how you handle your bank accounts and other sensitive information.
There are many sad realities about divorce, and two of them include the fact that your filings are often made public and that the private accounts you once shared do not belong to both of you anymore.
Protect Your Family’s Privacy During Divorce
In order to regain some sanity, you need to ensure that your personal privacy is protected during a divorce. That means keeping your personal life away from prying eyes, verifying that your private accounts are locked and password protected, and ensuring the safety of your kids both online and in the real world. Today, we will discuss all of the considerations you should remember when protecting your family during a divorce.
Keeping Your Private Issues Quiet
When it comes to protecting your privacy during a divorce, it takes more than being cautious around the neighbors and family. What you may not realize is that even though most financial documents are confidential, any exhibits or affidavits that are filed can be made public. In court, exhibits may include witness statements, testimonials, transcripts of phone calls, photos, and more.
Once that information is made public, it is hard to manage where it can go. If any of these exhibits paint you in an unflattering light, then it could affect your personal relationships and your ability to find a job.
Luckily, there are a few measures that you can take to try and retain your privacy. One idea is to attempt to settle and get the divorce over with before it becomes complicated. This process could include trying divorce mediation, which can help you and your spouse come to an agreement that will avoid court and those potentially harmful exhibits. Also, when you work with a mediator, all conversations are kept confidential.
Regardless of how long the divorce might take, it is also a good idea to advise your attorney to complete a confidential filing, which will redact much of the private info. Your lawyer can also attempt to file for your paperwork to be held from public view. It isn’t always guaranteed, but it is worth a shot.
Smart Passwords and Other Security Measures
It is also important to protect your privacy when it comes to securing your home, finances, and personal information. Your former spouse must understand that you don’t share everything anymore and that you have your own personal property.
You deserve to feel safe when you are in your own home, so make sure to change the locks if necessary and update the passwords on the smart systems in your home. Also, do a sweep around your home for any hidden cameras or microphones and check the devices connected to your Wi-Fi router and eliminate anything you didn’t install yourself.
The divorce will also mean that you will likely be setting up your own bank and credit card accounts as a way of reclaiming your life and rebuilding your finances. It is important that you secure your accounts with a strong password that uses a mixture of characters, including letters, numbers, and punctuation. Try to avoid the desire to use passwords that include personal information because you think they are easy to remember. There are many people who can find the clues to that password by perusing your social media.
If you are unsure of how to create a complex password, then consider the tips from World Password Day and try using an online password generator or string together two nonsensical phrases.
It is essential that you protect all of your files from prying eyes. Even if you don’t think your spouse will be snooping, proper protection is essential so that you keep yourself safeguarded against the many hackers and cybercriminals in the world. An easy way to ensure your privacy is to add a password to all of the files that you have online and on your computer. You can easily password-protect PDFs and similar files by using online tools that allow you to upload your file, add a smart password, and then save it to your system.
In this day and age, when data breaches are frequent, it is important to protect everything you do on your computer, tablet, and smartphone.
Protecting Your Kids Online
If you have kids, then you know that another of the difficult parts of a divorce is the fact that your little ones have to experience this truly painful time. That is why it is important that you do everything to protect them and their privacy.
For instance, caution is essential on social media, especially if your kids are old enough to use it. Advise your kids not to share any personal information on social media because not only could it be used against you during the divorce, but that information could also be seen by unsavory characters online.
Also, it is possible that some people you know might try to post negative things about you and the family. Since you don’t need that negativity and you don’t want your kids to see it, unfriend individuals you no longer speak to and create a new account if necessary.
Finally, it is important to talk to your kids about the internet and the dangers that lurk around every corner. Your child may only want to help by looking for support online during this difficult time, but you must advise that there are many dangerous websites and predators that could be lurking. For extra protection, it is important that you improve internet security by installing a virtual private network that will disguise your location. Also, ensure that your firewall is up to date to eliminate external threats.
In the end, there is no way around the fact that divorce is hard. However, by using the tips discussed here, you can at least ensure that your privacy is protected.
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