Divorce can be a highly complex, confusing process. Even the most amicable and seemingly simple divorces have numerous elements that demand resolution. And in fact, the amount of details and decisions that go into a divorce can be surprising — and overwhelming.
As such, it is not uncommon for people to overlook certain elements that may not seem to directly affect the divorce process. For instance, you may not be thinking about things like your virtual security and privacy, but you should.
During any divorce, people might do things they know they shouldn’t. And with so much of our lives available online, it is easier than ever for someone to look through an ex’s email, check his or her call history and dig through social media messages.
Because this information could be damaging in a divorce, it is crucial to protect your digital life and behaviors. Below are some simple ways to do this.
- Unsync your accounts. As this CNBC article notes, you and your ex might have your calendars, emails or cloud storage synced with each other, whether you know it or not. Make sure you adjust your settings to stop automatic syncing.
- Change your passwords. Even if you think your ex doesn’t know your passwords, changing them can be crucial. He or she might know more than you think.
- Update your privacy settings. This can be especially important for social media accounts. Go through your accounts and know who can access and share the information you put out there. Consider unfollowing or defriending your ex and related parties and making public profiles private.
- Lock phones, computers and tablets. If you don’t lock these devices already, your kids could wind up seeing something you don’t want them to see about your divorce. Or, your ex could easily view personal messages or information should you leave a device unattended.
These are simple ways that you can protect yourself and your privacy during a divorce, so it is important not to minimize them.