At PuTTin’ OuT, we try not to be too judgmental of people we don’t know, and always try to be understanding about people’s circumstances and feelings and trials.

That said, sometimes people go a little beyond what we can understand and respect – and in the social media industry, that means account hacking. We are NOT cool with that, especially when it happens to one of our favorite clients, who we often come to see more as friends than clients. Yes, this stuff really happens, and for reasons you wouldn’t believe. Here’s a little story.

A Social Media Horror Story

I have a client who is fairly well known in her industry, and also a genuinely kind, successful, and beautiful woman. Needless to say, she’s someone a boyfriend’s ex could potentially have some jealousy issues with…. Even when she’s not even with that boyfriend anymore, apparently.

Anyway, this client’s old ex-boyfriend’s ex-wife decided not too long ago that she would have someone hack my client’s social media accounts. This is major boundary-crossing for anyone, but it’s even worse when your social media accounts reach thousands of people, many of which are former, current, and potentially future clients and networking professionals.

The hacker then proceeded to update these accounts with some unflattering and professionally damaging lies about substance abuse (seriously?!). It goes without saying that when I found out about this, I took it not only as an insult to my client, but to me as well as her social media manager.

It’s a scary thought in today’s media-obsessed culture that someone could just take over your accounts and do whatever they please with them – no matter how you feel about social media, for those of us who use and thrive on it, it’s an extension of ourselves. It’s like someone hijacking your personality!!

How You Can Protect Your Online Identity

Unfortunately, there is no fail-safe for protecting your accounts. Even the world’s biggest companies get hacked from time to time – so changing your password every week can only go so far. The best thing you can do is be aware, and be prepared.

If you have a PuTTin’ OuT account, you get complimentary reputation monitoring services. Just sign in, go to the Monitoring tab on the left, and use the dropdowns to filter whatever mentions you like as associated with your name or brand.

You can set up regular updates or log in and check manually whenever you like, all as part of your existing PuTTin’ OuT package!

Don’t be another social media horror story! Let us help you keep your good reputation intact!

Have your own hacking story, or tips for rep management? Let’s talk about it in the comments!