Do you know anyone with Zero online presence?

[Window82]

That’s my question? My DH was like this until he had to set up a LinkedIn account for work, he also has a profile now on his work website. But no Social media.

I have a profile on my work website and also have Instagram and Facebook.

The only person I can think of is my Nan as she’s illiterate and her life is very basic. She is aware of things like social media from watching the television but she also speaks little English so has a very sheltered life.

I was trying to track down my old neighbour’s daughter to contact her and found nothing online. Also an old university friend who is a solicitor and I can she’s on the roll but I can’t find her on her firm website.

I can usually find out a lot about people straightaway (e.g. new prospective clients) because of their online profiles but some people have zero presence!

I have a client who works in IT he has zero presence out of choice! I find that really interesting. He said he’d rather there was nothing about him available online.

This is the only SM I have

My husband has absolutely nothing. We have one parent each, neither even has internet

I have zero online presence, I hate Facebook and don't do any social media. I don't think MN counts as it's anonymous.

I held out on WhatsApp for as long as I could, but gave in out of necessity for work.

What people need to know about me for work they can ask me in interviews, or find out from my actual work.

I'm not a tech-phobe, btw, I'm very computer literate, can code etc and am in my early 40s. I'm just very private.

Not using the Internet is very different from being security aware as to how you use the Internet. I know quite a few people who are heavy Internet users but have zero google results for their names, either because they are careful of digital privacy, or because they work in sensitive jobs that require them to have no digital footprint (some jobs will wipe your digital footprint and ensure that your name doesn't show up in a google search).

Apart from MN I have no other SM accounts. It's a choice.

My parents don’t (80’s)

My ex husband deleted all SM including LinkedIn when he started cheating in a bid to avoid detection. 😂

Same here. I have a modernish i-phone, spend all day on one of my many laptops, do as much as I can online (banking, shopping, etc), but am a private person, so SM is minimised, mostly to anonymous forums like Mnet. It's nothing at all to do with not being IT literate - I've been computing and programming since 1980, it's a privacy thing. I want control over who sees and knows what about me.

I really cringe when you see people "over-sharing" on SM, i.e. daily photos of themselves, their children, etc., telling people where they are every day, telling people where they've been and what they've bought, pictures of their cars, their house, etc. All that information out there for anyone to see and take advantage of, i.e. scammers, deranged weirdos, criminals, etc. No thanks!

Exactly. I do everything online and spend all day on my computer working. I just keep my social and private life out of it.

Apart from the danger of data scraping, ID theft, stalking and the rest of it, I don't like the effect SM has on our social lives. I saw it straight away in the very early days of FB (which was trialled at my university). Everyone was suddenly taking pictures on a night out, instead of actually enjoying the night out. All conversation went out of the window as the photo interruptions were constant. It's even worse now with smart phones and people filming everything.

I don't need to know the day to day details of my friends' lives, and they don't need to know mine. We can save up the good stuff for conversation when we meet up or chat on the phone, the rest is not worth talking about.

I've also seen several friends and relatives get caught up in dodgy online communities and conspiracy theories. The algorithms these days are downright dangerous.

Exactly.

What people don't realise is that it's now very easy to "join up" everything out there online on one person. There are two websites where you type in a username you have found online and it will show you every other account, of any kind, across the web with that username, plus any passwords that have been released in PWN breeches linked to those accounts! Bingo. You then know their username format and passwords and can get into anything they have in a flash. People have no idea.

Also, If I have someone's name and email address, there are free websites where I can find out a terrific amount just from that. The tools out there are incredible - if only people knew.

Ditto to taxguru. I’m more visible online than DH (as mentioned upthread) because work requires me to have a Twitter presence, but I use it only for work-related matters. I do have an Instagram account but rarely use it nowadays. Everything is locked down, no location sharing or identifiable personal info, especially on here.

A friend of mine only had WhatsApp but he is a police officer so completely understand his reasons for privacy.

I have Pinterest, Insta and Threads... I use all 3 for my online business and never post anything personal. If it wasn't for my art, i wouldn't bother with any of them. I treasure my privacy. Nothing to hide at all, I just value having a private, and quiet life.

Oh, and WhatsApp - i use that, mainly for my closest pal who now lives abroad 🙂

I have very little, and the little there is relates to work. DC are the same. No social media, LinkedIn, Insta, etc.

I work with a number of eminent academics in cyber security-they are cited online but you won’t find their details anywhere-they are completely locked down.

One of my friends in late 40’s is not online. Doesn’t use any social media. Does have an email address for work but it is not in their name and there isn’t a single picture online. they have no personal social media (just business pages). Also doesn’t have a smart phone or use online banking, online shopping etc. It’s really weird. They do look on my social media using someone else’s login though!

I know plenty of people who don't, and for many reasons.

My elderly aunt, she doesn't have the internet. She's a recovered gambling addict and she'd bankrupt herself if she had access even to online bingo and the like.

Yes, one of my colleagues.
She has no FB or any other apps like what’s up, LinkedIn, instagram.
She has no Amazon, she say’s doesn’t want to be checked and tracked, she doesn’t shop online, she would rather drive and trawls through tens of shops to search for a particular item.
Last week she wanted a particular coat for herself from Next- she spotted in our local shop but not in her size, so she drove to 6! different Next Stores in the wide (rural area) 100miles area to find some, instead of ordering them online or check shop availability.
Also she doesn’t use cards for payment wherever she can, in shops uses only cash.
I don’t think she even has bank account, but I guess so she must have as for online bills, and salary, but that it could be probably paid into/ from her DPs account.

Loads of older people; younger people who don’t like social media.

I have a colleague who is mid 40s who only just bought a smartphone. He basically only uses it as a phone. 5 people in our office with age ranges mid 40s to 60s. Only 2 of us have much social media. The oldest and the youngest funnily enough.

Re LinkedIn - lots of folk won’t use it/have never seen the need to.

Re looking people up/finding their media presence - do we do this? Is it PC?

I’m not active on social media at all, no FB, Insta etc.

I deactivated my Facebook, Instagram and Twitter a few years ago. Felt that I was spending too much time doom scrolling! I can't say I miss any of them. I keep in contact with friends via WhatsApp, and obviously mumsnet is a form of social media but that's all.

I just googled my name, and it threw up nothing related to me whatsoever. I appreciate the privacy and anonymity.

Honestly, not much difference between WhatsApp and texts. Costs, I suppose but I don’t feel friends are out of contact if they don’t use WhatsApp. I would never contact my own DH via WhatsApp, seems very impersonal

Very common for academics to not be on social media, whatever their field. They can feel vulnerable if they have findable personal accounts

My Dad doesn't. Thankfully 🤣. My 25 yo DD didn't until recently but now has an IG account mainly for her own work and sharing artwork she likes. She is definitely unusual.

I have virtually none. I have a Facebook account which I needed for access to a group but which is locked down and I have never posted on. What's app. That's it. I'm 59 BTW.

My best friend.
my husband