Based on years of sleuthing, a private investigator has shared the most common mistake women make that exposes them to predators.
Jade Savage, 27, has been a licensed private investigator for six years, which means she has tried and tested ways of successfully snooping on behalf of her clients.
She’s sharing them so women can see the ways they expose themselves to potential predators.
Among the most common dangerous things she sees people do is tagging locations in social media posts that they visit every day—like their gym.
She said this “literally leaves a footprint” for stalkers and predators to follow.”
Savvy Savage from Arizona said another common mistake—which she is able to exploit when she works—is people leaving their curtains and blinds open all day and night.
This allows her and others to “see everything”—including “what people are watching on TV or eating for dinner.”
She said she very often sees people tagging locations on social media posts which they visit very frequently—revealing their detailed daily or weekly locations.
“Don’t post where you are online—you’re literally leaving a footprint for people to find you,” she said. “If you want to post where you are, wait until after you’ve left to post it.
“You'd be amazed to see how many people I find because they do this.”
If someone tags the gym that they go to, it’s so dangerous—a predator would know where to find you “five days a week.”
“Same thing goes for posting where you work or your child’s school. As a private investigator if I don’t know your home address, you’ve just given me, or a predator, the next place to find you,” she said. "I had a client who had someone show up to her child’s football game because they knew what school it was.
“I’m always shocked at how many people keep their blinds open as well.
“It’s highly illegal to film someone in their home, but if you keep your blinds open in the evening you can literally see everything—what you’re watching on TV, and what you’re eating.
“It’s okay to have the blinds open during the day, but I also have a film you can put over your windows to stop people looking in.
“Above all, I want everyone to be safe. Sharing these tips might make my job a little harder, but I'd rather women and children be safe.”
She took to social media to share her advice with her over 100,000 followers to make sure “women and children keep themselves safe.”
“My standpoint is that there are very scary people in the world,” Savage said. "I see how unsafe it is for people every single day, so I wanted to share how women can keep themselves safe.
“I decided to share the tips as recently I was at the mall and someone [was] targeting me to traffic me. He was following me and recording me—it was very scary.
“But what really struck me was that I realized this guy was in a room full of women and children and not one other person noticed or was alarmed. I was so glad he targeted me and not someone else because it could have gone so differently.”
Savage comes from a family of private investigators, which began when her mother tracked down her biological father and her several long-lost siblings.
The tips she shared are based on the ways she herself tracks down someone she’s trying to investigate.
- Don’t keep your blinds open once the sun goes down.
- Always be aware walking through car parks and never be looking down at your phone.
- Make sure your windows and garage doors are locked, not just your front door.
- Don’t tag your location whilst you’re still there.
- Don’t post where you work online.
- Don’t post places you visit often online—such as the gym or your child’s school.
- If you think someone’s following you, drive straight to a police station.
