What would it be like to truly live in a glass house? It would be awkward, right? Everyone passing by your home would be able to see where you are and what you are doing. But what teenagers don’t realize is that they’re turning their lives into virtual “glass houses” through their use of social media.

Many teenagers put a lot of their vital information on the Internet by cataloging their every move with endless selfies. They see these postings as harmless, but they can end up losing something very valuable.

When you post a picture to the Internet, anyone and everyone can gain access to that picture even though you think you have privacy settings. For example, it’s your birthday and you post a picture of that fancy watch you got from your parents. Now everyone knows that you have a valuable watch. Later that night, some friends take you out to dinner at a hibachi grill. You post another picture of yourself standing in front of the fiery grill, striking a goofy pose with excited jazz hands dancing around your face. Everyone likes your picture and comments “Happy Birthday!” and “Have fun!” What seems harmless may cost you $500.

Let’s review. Earlier, you let the entire world– the good and the bad people– know that you have an expensive watch. Not a big deal. Yet.

But when you posted that second picture, you let the entire world– good and bad– know you’re not home. They all know how to get to your house because they can find your address in your profile information. The picture quite graphically shows that you aren’t wearing that watch, and an astute criminal won’t miss that detail. He realizes this means the $500 watch is sitting in your empty house.

That criminal is going to clean your house for you, free of charge. He is going to make a profit that day by selling your brand-new watch on eBay. You just lost a nice watch because you just had to tell all your friends about your hibachi dinner.

Sounds unfair, right? It is, but you brought it upon yourself. In some aspects, social media is a great tool. It helps people keep in touch with friends and allows them to communicate easily with large groups. Although these are clear perks, social media activity must be limited.

Don’t post your life for everyone to see because you don’t know who will see it. And when a stranger knows specific details of your private life, you are truly living in a glass house.