For those who don't know already

[silverthunder]

LiveJournal has released a feature that allows users to track journals and posts without listing the journal among your friends. Basically, you click a button and BOOM! All posts on the journal or all comments on the post (depending on which you're tracking) are sent to your email.

Sound harmless? Well, maybe.

I think it's creepy. I'm already about 90% friends-only; only the fluff posts and memes are left un-friends-locked, and those who don't comment to me and let me know they want to know the boring details of my daily life don't get added as friends. But still.

Suppose I make a public post - for whatever reason; I have friends who don't have LJs and I link them to certain posts sometimes - and someone wishes to make a comment on it that's really only meant for me. The easiest way to do this has always been to comment and then quickly delete it. That way I get it in my email but no one else sees it. Well, now someone COULD see it, because if you're watching a post, you get those comments in your email as well.

Not to mention the fact that I'm sure we've all had those moments when we post something and then think 'oops' and delete it because it's not necessarily something we want everyone seeing. 'Oops' isn't going to cut it if someone's already watching you, is it?

At the very least, I think we should be informed when someone is stalking our journals or our posts, and who those people are. Paranoia could sink in pretty fast otherwise.

anax provided a nice handy link to the release post for those who would like to express their concerns. I've already expressed mine.

Comments

[replica.livejournal.com]

but as many people have already pointed out--the stuff that's trackable is stuff that's already public anyways (or available to you, in case of friends only that you have access to). if someone really wanted to stalk you online? they'd be doing it anyways.

if you have friends without lj, why not just have them email you if they don't want the rest of the world seeing what they say?

*shrugs* I think it's a wonderful feature, one LJ has really needed for awhile, and I don't understand all this paranoia over it. Because if someone wants to stalk you, they're going to be doing it anyways, with or without LJ's little notification system. The notification system merely makes it easier, assuming they have a livejournal.

Though I do agree I'd like to see who's subscribing to my stuff. Just because I'm curious, not because I have any stalker concerns :D

[terrierlee.livejournal.com]

So that's whut those pins are for? o_O; Weird. Very very weird.