Social media is a relatively new thing to come up in divorces. Prior to the 2000’s, it was almost unheard of to have a spouse online spreading rumors or venting about his or her partner. Today, it’s so common that it’s almost something people ignore.

The problem with social media is partially that it has a history of everything you’ve ever done or posted. You might update it regularly to show what you did all day, or you might upload photos to share with friends and family members. Friends add photos of you, too. You have chats online, messages from others and share additional information out of the public eye.

When it comes to a divorce, all of that information being available could be bad for your case. Why? It’s hard to hide photos or past posts from others.

Lock down your accounts for a better outcome

When you realize that you’ll face a divorce in the future, it’s time to lock down your accounts. Unfriend or disconnect your account from mutual friends and family members. Take your spouse off the account. Make your account private, as well.

It’s a better idea to completely deactivate your account if possible. That way, no one can access your past social media discussions. There’s a chance the court could ask you to activate the account, but it’s unlikely.

What happens if you don’t deactivate an account or make it private?

Maybe nothing at all, depending on the things you share. However, if you post things such as you hanging out with friends and drinking when you’re trying to obtain custody, that might look bad. The same is true if you admit to cheating on your spouse in a post and that information makes its way to court. The last thing you want is to undermine yourself with a history of the things you once said or did.

Your divorce is hard enough without your past haunting it. Take your time and limit how much the other party can access about your life.