The Dangers of Social Media

Use of social media sites is a great way to connect with family and friends. However, if you’ve been injured or are considering filing a lawsuit, your social media activity may be used against you.

We urge you to take caution online, anything you write or post can fall into the hands of the defendant, their insurance company or their attorneys and be used to attack the validity of your claim.

10 Tips on How to Protect Yourself

  1. Use the highest privacy settings. Even with the most private profile, you should always write or post items with the assumption it will be open to the public.
  2. Don’t post anything about meetings. Mentioning meetings with your lawyers or staff members can result in a challenge to the attorney-client privilege.
  3. Don’t post anything about your case. Do not answer any questions about the facts of the case or how you are feeling.
  4. Be selective about who you add. Do not add anyone as a friend on your accounts unless you are sure you know them.
  5. Take a break from social media. The more you use the sites while your case is pending, the greater the chances you will post something potentially damaging to your case.
  6. Don’t forward any emails. Forwarding or sharing emails related to your case or any of our communications can result in waiver of the attorney-client privilege.
  7. Think before you post. What people post on social media may not actually reflect what they are doing or feeling, but rather, what they want people to believe. This “posed” posting can be very damaging to your claim because it won’t accurately reflect your state of being.
  8. Don’t visit any insurance websites, participate in blogs, chat rooms or message boards.
  9. Don’t delete previous posts. Once you have shared a post, it may be considered relevant evidence in your case. Even if you have not yet filed a claim, the destruction of evidence can be used against you if litigation is “reasonably assumed.”
  10. Only send emails about your case to your attorneys. There is no “unsend” button. It is very important you do not send any emails to friends or family about your condition or activities of your case.