Blogging Tips

Weird Things That Have Happened to Me as A Blogger

by Olivia

The world is full of weird people who do weird things. As bloggers we are somewhat open to the weirdos of the world attracting themselves to us. When you post about your life or put information about yourself on the internet you’re bound to attract some weird people into your space. I had no idea that being a blogger would almost make me open and accessible to whoever, whenever. Its really scary if you think about it too hard. But I know one thing for sure. That the internet has no shortage of weird people.

This is one of the main reasons as to why I choose to keep personal information about myself away from the internet. My personal social media accounts are private and will remain that way for a very long time. I am so cautious about who I let into my online space, and you should be too. I always tell other bloggers to keep their private life private and keep all personal information away from the internet. Like where you work or even sometimes your full name. I have regrets sometimes about using my full name on the internet, but its just a name. You cant get anymore information from it other than that.

I thought for todays post I would share some of the weird things that have happened to me as a blogger. In hopes that it will make you think twice about sharing certain things online or not having your personal online accounts private. This is supposed to be a light hearted and funny post but in all seriousness. If you are a blogger, do what you can to keep you and your love ones protected.

DATING PROFILES

So this is a weird and wonderful story. I woke up this morning and got two emails saying that I had signed up to two separate dating profiles. One called Muslima.com and one called Thaicupid.com. Of course I did not do this, but why would someone use my email address to sign up for dating profiles? As I clicked to unsubscribe from these email alerts, it allowed me access to the profiles and I saw the name and messages this weird person had done.

I thankfully managed to change the email of the account and delete the accounts. But who knows if this will happen again. My blog email is on my blog and on other platforms I have. Purely so that brands and other creators can contact me. No matter what you do, there will be people who do weird things like that. So just watch out!

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WEIRD EMAILS

One of the most weird things thats happened to me as a blogger is having really strange emails be sent to me. I check my blog email junk regularly and it always has some email from an African general telling me they want me to have a cut of the 5.8 million dollars they have found. Some of them go as far as asking for my address and bank details to send me the funds. Obviously I know this is a phishing email but its still so annoying to get them on a regular basis. I have also had people email me being very rude. Demanding a job from me due to losing theirs. Or just asking me what theme I use without asking how I am or anything else. I think people forget we are humans and that we have feelings.

If you ever get an email you aren’t sure of. Report it and then delete it. I can imagine so many people have fell for these types of emails not realising how bad it could be for them.

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COPY CATS

Number one on the list of weird things is for sure copy cats. At first I thought it was flattering that people wanted to copy my content. Then I found it plain weird. I have had people copy nearly everything about me. From what I put on social media to what I write on my blog. I know it can be hard to come up with original content and I have struggled with this myself when I first started blogging. But there’s a fine line between being inspired by other creators and just out right copying them.

It gets almost creepy that someone would do it. Like they’re trying to be you. When in reality you are you, and I am me. And thats what makes life amazing. No two people are the same. Make sure you find your own feet as a creator. You’ll be taken more seriously and be seen as a much more authentic blogger if you do.

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What are some weird things that have happened to you whilst blogging? Have any of the things I mentioned happened to you?

Olivia x
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68 thoughts on “Weird Things That Have Happened to Me as A Blogger”

  2. The weird thing (I should say annoying) that has happened with me that people trying to promote shamelessly their blog and spamming my comments. There was a blogger who would comment just “nice” on my posts everyday then write “visit my new blog post through this link”. It was really very annoying to handle each day. Then a few people have also tried forcing me to follow their blog, just by saying that I liked lots of your posts and now you should follow my blog too.

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  3. 💜 “Weird” is no longer in My Vocabulary EveryOne; now it’s just a case of Each to Their Own and Different Strokes for Different Folks…if I AM to Encounter InCompatible Vibes, whether online, phone, face-to-face et al, I Make My Excuses and DisEngage; according to some this ‘Bizarre’ Behaviour Makes Me “Wierd” in Their View

    …💛💚💙…

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  4. I haven’t experienced anything weird through my blog yet but I have had weird stuff happen with dating profiles and stuff.. I hope I don’t get any hate speech or correspondence.

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  5. Wow, that is so scary that someone would set up dating profiles under someone else’s name. As a new blogger, thank you sharing these tips. I currently have a personal social media accounts and keep them on private and I also am careful in sharing personal information about myself on line. I am so sorry this has happened to you.

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    1. They get so annoying. Because some genuine emails end up in there and I really don’t want to have to sift through all the weird ones to find one I actually need!

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  13. The dating profile is probably the creme de l creme … I can’t imagine why anyone would do something like that unless they are purposely trying to mess with you. It’s horrible, but there are some very manipulative people in this world! I agree that you should do everything not to share your personal info regardless of how small your blog is.

    Shelly DS | https://growingwithspawn.com

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  15. I am so eerie of this happening. I am new to the blogging world, just opened this app yesterday. I’ve enjoyed a few posts and seriously considering blogging myself. I know you say to watch out what you post, but here is my question. If my personal life is what is encouraging me to reach out to the world, is it ok to use my circumstances, just not use any real personal info like names, location, etc. ?

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    1. Its whatever you feel most comfortable sharing. For your own safety, I would always recommend keeping locations and family member photos and names away from blogging. It just safeguards you and everyone in your life!

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  16. Did you not read this post or the comments that came with it? People literally commented on this post saying how annoying self promotion is. Please dont just leave your blog link and tell people to visit your site in peoples comment sections. If you’d like to advertise on my blog see my blog advertising section.

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      1. It can cause problems at times because the pen name is tyed into my phone and computer, but I think it gives a layer of protection as far as social media is concerned.

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  18. The dating profile is very weird. Did they use anything else other than your email?

    I am very cautious of how I approach my blog with personal information. Once I put the blog details on my main instagram page and while searching my blog on google —I was referred straight back to my Instagram page and I got so freaked out —I removed the link from my profile. You are right if you think too much about internet and all the weirdos that thrive from it —it creeps you out.

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    1. Nope! Just my email address!

      Thats why I have two separate instagram pages! A personal and a blogging account! Better to keep everything separate in my eyes

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    1. Hahaha! I did see some weird conversations between whoever used my email and some old men. Thankfully they only used my email and not pictures of me!

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  20. A man who liked all of my Twitter comments. I thought it slightly off and look at his account. He had no followers and followed 7 people. All of them were women in education with the same last name as mine… odd and blocked.

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  22. I get emails with offers on Seo package all the time even when I haven’t asked for them. It can get really annoying.

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  24. oh yeah weird emails are horrifying especially ones from creepy old males and i totally relate to the copy cat thing, just make your own content it’s not that hard 😁

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  25. the world is definitely filled with unique individuals. We live in a world where we constantly overshare yet never get to know someone on a deeper level. I will have to be on the lookout for the weirdness. Thank you for sharing. Hearing your insights is very helpful. It is like having a mentor.

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  27. That’s crazy. I’ve had my identity stolen 3 times in the last 40 years. It was so bad at one time I literally had to check my credit reports every other day for a year. I caught most of the fraudulent credit cards and phone accounts but what a pain. I’d receive multiple calls from creditors who never believed my story. I even had a police report. At that time I was a police lieutenant, which is probably why I was targeted. Go figure.

    2 years ago someone hacked my Netflix account which I accessed through Facebook. They were in my Facebook account and instant messaged my friends telling them I was working on a grant and needed their financial information and ID. Netflix and Facebook security were on it, but again how does that happen with all the supposed tech security out there? The offenders tried to bluff me by emailing me advising they have all of my passwords they accessed through my Apple computer. Fortunately they didn’t and I deleted that email account. I just changed all of my passwords (about 100).

    I no longer let my computer “remember” any passwords and I have crazy long passwords. I only access websites when I use them and log off. I’m changing my emails to names other than my real name. That takes time. I use throw-away email addresses for shopping and informational websites and change it about every 6 months.

    I even moved my blog from self-hosted WP to WordPress.com.

    No matter who you are someone will target you if you are lax.

    Take care and be safe. Great article.

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    1. Wow. That sounds so scary!!

      Its really concerning how people can get access to information on us with a touch of a button or a guess of a password. I hope you managed to get it all sorted!

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  32. Reminds me of that saying: we don’t see the world as it is, we see the world as we are. People are odd, and the Internet tends to bring it out more, but most of it is innocuous. Obviously, if you are blogging, you should have a dedicated email for it that isn’t the one you use for everything. Some simple precautions can mitigate most problems.

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