Technology has allowed creditors, debt collectors and some state
taxing authorities the ability to search for consumers on the internet use
social media networks such as Facebook, Myspace,Twitter, Linkedin and other
sites to find consumers. This seems extreme
but it is legal.
According to the Fair Debt Practices Collection Act, debt
collectors can contact your family and friends to find your location or get
other personal information such as your address, email address or phone
number. If you posted your contact
information including your current employer on your social media profile you
may soon be getting emails, phone calls or visits from your debt collectors.
What if a debt collector contacted someone who is listed as a friend on your
social media profile? How embarrassing would that be? With the frequent consumer data breaches and
lack of strong security protections on Facebook and other social media profiles
it is not too hard to find anyone these days.
If you use social media networks and are in debt, you
presence on them can increase your chances of your creditors and debt
collectors finding you. The IRS has not
confirmed whether they use social media networks to find taxpayers who owe back
taxes but I assume they probably do. However,
tax agents cannot friend a consumer who owes back taxes on a social media site
but that probably doesn’t stop them from doing it. Here are some ways you can be found on the
internet:
1. Internet search engines
2. Motor vehicle records
3. Chat rooms and forums
4. Social media networks
5. Employment records
6. Tax records
7. Bank records
8. Public inquiries at local businesses such as groceries stories, barbershops, church meetings, social and civic meetings, etc.
9. Posts you made about an article or video or post you made on a website
10. Credit reports
Contact your creditors and debt collectors before they
contact you to setup a payment plan or request a financial hardship. Follow-up with a letter confirming the
agreement and stick to the agreement. It
is better to be safe than sorry.
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