During a divorce, it’s important to protect your privacy and that of your family. Telling everyone the details of your split is unnecessary, especially if you have children who need protecting as well. If you can keep your private news to yourself, it will make your divorce easier to handle for all involved.
One way to deal with the curiosity seekers is to have a standard answer that you feel comfortable sharing. It should be something general, like, “It’s a challenge, but I’m getting through it; thanks for asking.” Then you can quickly turn the conversation to other topics.
Here are a few other tips on how you can protect your privacy during a divorce:
Change your passwords. It is not unusual for spouses to “spy” on each other by accessing each other’s computers or smartphones looking for evidence to use in a divorce. Change your passwords to access all your devices as well as those that unlock your social media accounts, bank accounts, and email.
Check for spyware. Spyware is software installed on a computer or phone that can monitor the content of emails, text messages, and Internet searches. It does this by recording the keystrokes made on the device by the user.
Avoid social media. Social media has become a ripe hunting ground for spouses and attorneys looking for evidence in a divorce case. In addition, at any time a judge could order you to preserve all of your emails for use as evidence. The proper outlet for expressing your feelings during a divorce is in the privacy of a therapist’s office, not online.
Disable shared devices and cloud services. Disable the ability to share information between devices, including services like Google, Dropbox, Amazon, and more.
Protect private information and valuables. If you are still living with your soon-to-be-ex, be sure you lock up your private papers and any valuables you fear may be taken out of vengeance in a lockbox or safe that only you have access to.
Request that the court seal your records. Ask your attorney to file a request with the court to seal your divorce records. Although these requests are not always granted, in some circumstances the judge may agree to partially seal your records to keep private any information that could potentially damage your career or hurt your children.
When you are faced with an important life decision regarding a key family relationship, the advice and assistance of an experienced family law attorney often prove crucial to your understanding of the issues involved and your satisfaction with the ultimate outcome of your family law matter. Contact us today for your free consultation.
