Burglars use Facebook to target victims on holiday

Derek Simpson told all his Twitter followers that he was at Wembley. Other celebrities give hour-by-hour updates on their holidays Photo: Twitter/REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth
Social networking sites provide a "potential gold mine" of information for criminals, with many users unwittingly publishing their addresses, and full details of where they are and their holiday plans.
A survey of 50 former criminals, undertaken by the insurance company More Than, found that many burglars undertook a considerable amount of research before attempting to steal from people's houses -- research that is easier to come by in the age of online social networks.

Richard Taylor, a former burglar who is now a Methodist minister, said: "In the old days you could buy information from a postman or from a milkman, about who was away on holiday. Now people are online giving you updates about going to the airport, about sipping their coffee, about everything.
"I always say that on Facebook it says you have 900 friends. You don't really. You have one friend and 899 nosy people who vaguely know you."
Pete Markey, a spokesman for More Than, said: "The research suggests that burglars still use tried and tested methods when it comes to breaking in to properties but that they're keeping up with the times too.
"Using Facebook or Twitter to boast about a big night out or a fortnight in Barbados may impress friends and colleagues, but it's enough to give the social-media savvy burglar all they need to know."
The survey found that 68 per cent said they collected information about their target's home and daily routine in advance of committing a crime.
And 12 per cent of the former criminals said they had used social networking sites to do their research -- a figure likely to be far higher with the modern generation of internet savvy criminals.

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