In the social media age, it seems a lot of us have this growing need to catalogue our lives. Whenever we go on vacations, we measure how great it was by how many likes our photos get.

We do the same thing in other events like weddings, or merely hanging out with friends or snapping shots or videos at concerts.

This is unfortunately the view of most people, but before social media vacations were judged differently. They were judged by the quality of the memories for those involved.

But that is a thing of the past and now people need social media affirmation in order to feel good about these experiences. This has led to us over-posting and over-sharing our lives…. AND THAT can be dangerous.

Setting aside the emotional aspects of what social media does to us, this practice is dangerous on a security and privacy level as well. For one, you are giving people information that can result in your home being open to get robbed.

For example, if you make a point of announcing your flight departures on Facebook, you are giving people a time frame for your when no one is at home. This is also true if you take excessive pictures of your meals or you at your hotel room. It’s essentially a digital bullhorn telling people that your place is empty. You can even put other people at risk if you are constantly tagging them in these pictures too.

Over-posting can also push you into being a target for theft. One aspect to consider is blatant visual brags. If you are constantly flooding your friends feed with pictures, they can develop jealousy. And if you are posting these pictures publicly then anyone can grow this resentment and jealousy. So much that they may grow “perceived entitlement” and want some of your stuff.

But the real punch to this is that initially, not many people will care about your vacation or whatever it is your doing. One study found that while some people think their posts are amazing, no one wants to hear about them. No one cares really cares what you were eating or where you are going on a daily basis. The study concluded that friendships and connections are formed from what people have in common. So posting constant selfies in a fancy hotel room may not resonate with people at all. Instead you may alienate some people. That or they may grow resentful or jealous.

At the end of the day, over-posting is akin to bragging. Not only that but it can leave you and your family and friends exposed to lash-outs or even robbery. But that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t take pictures.

Instead, if you are going for trips, make an effort to not post the pictures immediately and instead filter through them later. Pick out a nice handful of pictures that tell a story of your trip AFTER you’ve already experienced it. Consider some creativity and take some different pictures. Forget about the pictures of feet on a beach or historical landmarks. Take the opportunity to try something different and unique.

When we become a little picky about our pictures and see ourselves as story tellers, we can all avoid over-posting and keep ourselves safe in the process.