Staying in control of your digital life and sharing content between all of your devices sounds like a dream come true—until you really look into it. Today, you have the world at your fingertips and can access whatever you need, whenever you need it, at home or in the office. But are you sure you really want to do that? Let’s look at the pros and cons.

For starters, linking your applications among all devices is simple and convenient, eliminates the chances of you missing an important call, text message or email and makes you feel much more in control of your digital life. This connectivity helps you respond to communications in a timely manner, make changes or updates to social networks from anywhere at anytime, or take and upload photos instantaneously to access from any of your mobile devices.

Yet, this simplicity also comes with a drawback: the potential loss of your privacy. For example, say you are using Facebook on your office computer to chat with a friend. You step away from your desk and continue the conversation from your mobile device. If you’ve left Facebook open on your computer browser at your desk, anyone walking by will be able to watch your chat in real time—as it happens—with the text printing right on the screen. Logging out of one device before logging into another reduces this threat to your privacy. Password protect all of your devices with unique, challenging and memorable passwords to safeguard your information and your content.

Take time to decide if your privacy settings are correct before responding to a message in a heated exchange. Do you really want to respond publicly to a work colleague on Facebook who disagrees with a posting you made or would a private message be a better way to get your point across? Think about where your message may end up due to connected applications. Strategize and be aware of acceptable forms of use for the internet at your company. If you are a boss, are you setting a good example? If you are a staff person, do you want to keep your job? Never assume anything. If you are using an application from a mobile device that is linked to all your devices, assume everything you’re doing is accessible to others.

Pedro Pérez is a founding partner of Nuevo Advertising Group, and an adjunct professor of Global Brand Strategies at Ringling College of Art and Design. For over 17 years, he has offered clients his knowledge and expertise. Pérez has always demonstrated a keen analytical sense combined with a good dose of common sense in crafting digital and online marketing strategies as part of an integrated marketing plan.

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