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Looking at random people's profiles on social media

32 replies

Territorial · 27/02/2019 17:07

No one would admit to this in real life, so I thought I'd see if I really am a total weirdo or if others do this too.

When I'm on Instagram or Facebook I often find myself looking at the profiles of people I barely know or even complete strangers. I don't mean celebrities or 'Instagram famous' people, just ordinary everyday people with a few hundred followers. Sometimes they're friends of friends, sometimes they're friends of friends of friends...you get the picture. I like to look at their photos, see what they've posted. I don't know why I do this exactly except that I'm just curious. I understand people looking at the profiles of ex partners and having a stickybeak, but these are people I might have met once or don't even know at all in real life. It's like I'm building a wider database in my mind of overlapping social circles, but then I also find myself getting interested in their lives too. I could tell you that X has just gotten divorced, Y is in a new relationship, all because I check their profiles every so often. I've occasionally been introduced to someone in real life and already known all this stuff about them from their profiles.

Does anyone else do this? I feel like a bit of a weirdo as I know things about their life and they have no idea who I am. But then I also think they clearly don't care if people do that since their profiles are on public!

OP posts:
katsucurry · 27/02/2019 17:16

Yep, all the time. I also have a small selection of people whose profiles I check randomly to catch up on the drama. Not that talk about this in real life Wink

Territorial · 27/02/2019 17:23

Oh phew. It's like a real life soap opera or something with some people. Then there's other people who I think seem really cool and I wonder if our paths will ever cross in real life.

OP posts:
sunnymornings123 · 27/02/2019 17:31

I do this too 🙋‍♀️🙋‍♀️ no idea why - just curious about others' lives. I like to see if anyone has a simile life to mine 😂😂

DaisysStew · 27/02/2019 17:31

Oh god I do this Blush. So glad I’m not the only one. And I also have favourites to check where they have proper Jeremy Kyle type of dramas daily - all played out for my entertainment on Facebook lGrin

KittyLover91 · 27/02/2019 17:40

I'm a receptionist and when people sign in I look them up on Facebook 😂 totally not a stalker though just extremely nosey!

ScarletBitch · 27/02/2019 17:44

@KittyLover91 your breaching Data Protection and Privacy doing that.

Dreamzcancometrue · 27/02/2019 17:44

I keep my FB set to private so people like you dont snoop!

KittyLover91 · 27/02/2019 17:47

Oh bore off

Malibucyprus · 27/02/2019 17:47

Also guilty 🙋🏻‍♀️ It’s not usually intentional. Someone will comment on a ‘friends’ post, so I’ll click on them to see if I know them, then someone on their wall will spark my interest, and so on. I can get lost for a long time doing this 😳

OVAgroundWOMBlingfree · 27/02/2019 17:49

I'm a receptionist and when people sign in I look them up on Facebook
Really?

flowersaremyfave · 27/02/2019 17:49

Yep I do this all the time 😂 not really sure why

Malibucyprus · 27/02/2019 17:50

I’ve actually deleted my Facebook account so don’t do this anymore. But it’s all I ever did on there, it’s boring otherwise 🤷🏻‍♀️

DuggeesWoggle · 27/02/2019 17:50

I do it when reading comments in FB groups. Eg someone in a group is ranting about her husband being a knob, not pulling his weight, marriage on the rocks etc, I'll click on the profile to see if there are any pictures of the 'happy' couple. Just for a nosey. That sort of thing

Also if I'm interested in buying something I'll look at the person's profile to see if it looks like they are the sort of people who look after their things, so less likely I'll agree to buy something broken, smelly or stolen etc. I might be massively judging people but hey it's my money and I want to be careful where I spend it.

MunchMunch · 27/02/2019 17:50

Nope not me! Blush

GingerRogers84 · 27/02/2019 17:51

Guilty! Grin
However you have to be careful and not do what I did.
I was in the profile of someone weird who I vaguely knew! Reading their comments and enjoying the drama etc. I was WEEKS maybe even MONTHS down their FB and I accidentally liked a post!
The shame and fear! BlushGrin

TakemedowntoPotatoCity · 27/02/2019 17:53

Most people using FB must do this occasionally I'm sure. That's why it's worth thinking about what you really don't mind the world seeing and knowing forever!!!!!

hippoherostandinghere · 27/02/2019 17:54

Yep. All the time. And then sometimes I've spent the last 15 mins scrolling through some randomers FB and I catch myself on and I'm like wtf have I just wasted my time doing that for Blush

TakemedowntoPotatoCity · 27/02/2019 17:55

Sometimes I also think up a.completely random name in my head and look to see how many people are called it. I have sad life!

KeptTheBeachesShipwreckFree · 27/02/2019 18:00

I posted some photos of the inside of a local chapel a while ago onto a local history/now&then/past&present page and it got quiet a lot of likes and shares so I had a nosey around the people who'd liked it. It swallowed up a whole evening!

Territorial · 27/02/2019 18:02

I also look up random names that pop into my head Blush but I have my 'regulars' whose lives I find interesting. I'm always paranoid about accidentally liking one of their old posts!

OP posts:
Willowdenedixon · 27/02/2019 20:01

I’ve deleted FB (mostly for these very reasons) and keep other channels private, but sometimes if I’ve overheard a random name I’d look them up to see if I could find them, or if I only had partial details it would be a mini challenge to find them. Partly because I’m interested to prove how easy it is to do this, partly nosiness.

PepperSteak · 27/02/2019 20:15

I have about six people who I don’t follow on Instagram but visit their page maybe once a week. Goodnes knows why I don’t just follow them!

LimeKiwi · 27/02/2019 20:26

Yep, find myself looking at random strangers profiles and holiday pics! Blush Grin
Tell you what I do like doing - if someone comments in a group I'm in, if it says they're from somewhere interesting, say Australia or whatever on the location bit of the post (I'll have a snoop of their profile and look up the random exotic town I've never heard of and see what it's like Grin
Seriously, close down your profiles peeps, there's too many nosy cows out there like myself lol.
although where's the fun in that for everybody else

Birdsgottafly · 27/02/2019 20:36

I often look up someone whose posted something ridiculous on a political or charity post and end up looking at some of their Friends.

It does only tend to be people in other countries because I love the 'window into their world'.

Peakypolly · 27/02/2019 20:41

Oh yes! I sometimes have to rein my comments in when I see friends. They may mention their DS’s new girlfriend and I want to say “I think he is punching. New girlfriend is Oxbridge graduate,charity worker “etc. and I suddenly realise I only know that because I have spent an evening following a Facebook tale Blush

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