Urbandale: Would Your Facebook Friends Steal From You?

I knew people in my hometown who kept their lights on while away on vacation to fool burglars into thinking the home was occupied.

It’s always seemed silly and paranoid to me, so I chalked it up to the distrustful nature of my wealthy neighbors.

Similarly, if you deceive all of your Facebook friends and Twitter followers into thinking you’ve never left, you can better protect yourself from a home invasion.

As it turns out, police say all of those ideas are good ones.

"We haven't had any cases in our city that I'm aware of where we could trace a home burglary back to something someone posted on social media," said Randy Peterson, Urbandale police information officer.

That doesn't mean he thinks broadcasting your out-of-town trip is a good idea.

Police generally advise waiting to share your vacation plans and photos until you return home.

"Go out and have a great time, but show all the pictures afterward," Peterson said.

But these are our friends, fans, and followers, Officer Peterson!

Do you trust your Facebook friends? Do you censor your posts out of caution? Tell us in the comments below.

"When people are using social media, they always think that everyone who is on their friends list is safe," he said. "You might be 'friends' with someone you knew in high school. John Doe might have been a great kid in high school, but now he has a drug problem or a gambling problem, so he might do things you wouldn't expect him to."

Peterson suggests several ways to reduce your risk of being victimized while on vacation:

• Don't post that you're going on vacation before you leave.
• Don't post vacation photos until you return home.
• If you use your smart phone to take and post photos, change the settings so that it does not automatically post the location. If you don't know how to do that, take your phone into your company's store and they will show you how to do it. 
• Sign up for Urbandale police's home check program. Police will check on your home while you're gone.
• Have your mail and the newspaper stopped.
• Set lights, or even better your television set, on timers so it looks like someone is home. 
• Ask a trusted neighbor to watch your house. "That's where it's great to know your neighbors," said Peterson, "so you can look out for each other."