Americans Overshare on Social Media

For many, the first social interaction of their day is through social media. Whether responding to a comment on your recent post, watching a video of your friend’s baby taking their first steps or scrolling through another friend’s summer photo dump, millions of eyes sign in daily to take a peek into the lives of others. With the ease of sharing every thought, experience and opinion at the push of a button, many Americans do so frequently … a little too frequently.

A recent study by Secure Data Recovery found Americans overshare information on social media. (Photo: Tracy Le Blanc/Pexels)

As we watch Americans continually share their personal lives online, the line between sharing and oversharing can start to blur as certain posts become more common. Some posts can be dangerous to an individual’s privacy and security.

In continuation of a similar study in 2023, Secure Data Recovery wanted to pinpoint where exactly Americans overshare the most. To explore the subject further, SDR surveyed 2,025 Americans about what they share on social media, to find out in which states people overshare the most.

Key findings

Virginia ranked 13th on the list of states that overshare the most while Maryland ranked top on the list of states that overshare the least.

• West Virginia, New Jersey and Arkansas residents overshare the most on social media.
• 88 percent think parents overshare their children online.
• 89 percent think people share too much on social media in general.
• 56 percent have unfollowed someone for oversharing their political views.
• People overshare their controversial opinions, personal grievances and health issues the most.
• Nearly half of Americans think it is entertaining when people overshare on social media.

Where Americans overshare on social media

The top states that over share the most and least on social media. (Graph: Secure Data Recovery)

Nowadays, pretty much everyone shares some part of their lives on social media. Whether it is your mom posting a family update, your company sharing photos from the holiday party or your neighbor sharing a video of their dog chasing a squirrel, social media is a great way to keep tabs on everyone and anyone.

Within the sharing of memes, thoughts and photos, people tend to share a lot about themselves along the way. Sometimes, they push the limit on what is considered acceptable, and the posts come across as oversharing. To find out where Americans compromise their privacy and security most by oversharing on social media, SDR asked respondents a series of questions about their social media activity and then assigned points to the answers given.

People in West Virginia, New Jersey and Arkansas overshare the most on social media. People in those states overshare controversial opinions, family matters and personal grievances or complaints more than people in other states. However, they are unlikely to lose friends over it, as nearly half of Americans think it is entertaining when people overshare on social media.

Regardless of what state you live in, it is likely that you know someone who posts a lot of themselves online, especially since 47 percent say they post on social media at least once per week. With Facebook, Instagram and Twitter being the top platforms Americans post on, almost one in five say a stranger could learn intimate details about them from social media.

What Americans overshare on social media

From personal struggles to daily routines, people often feel the need to share intimate details about their lives on social media. The constant updates can seem unnecessary, and 89 percent say they think people share too much on social media. As people’s reasoning for oversharing can differ, it is unclear if oversharers are turning to their online community for validation, comfort or simply social interaction.

While oversharing isn’t uncommon online, neither are the topics people overshare about. The top things Americans admit to oversharing on social media are controversial opinions (40 percent), personal grievances or complaints (36 percent) and health issues (31 percent). For some, going through the challenges that life brings can seem lighter when they feel like others are going through the journey with them.

With the ability to share and store memories, social media can be viewed as a modern life scrapbook. In fact, one in five say they post photos or videos online at least once per week. For the majority, the content they put out is available for the whole world to see, as 60 percent say they have one or more of their social media profiles set to public view.

What parents share on social media most

Speaking of traditional scrapbooks, it almost seems like technology has done away with physical baby journals. Parents, more than anyone, are notorious for posting every milestone and achievement their children make on social media, where they can collect likes and comments from others. It’s such a common phenomenon that 88% say they think parents overshare their children online.

While the majority of posts are created with good intentions, sometimes, the information parents put out online can compromise their children’s current and future privacy. The top things parents post about their children are personal milestones (15 percent), school performance or behavior (9 percent, and detailed school information (7 percent). If parents aren’t careful, these posts can include identifiable, embarrassing or sensitive information, which can cause future trouble for the child.

Showing off their children online is most common among parents from Wisconsin, Oregon and Kentucky. While not every post parents make about their children is problematic, it is all too common for people to come across a post with too much of a child’s information. The action can be so concerning that 85 percent say parents should stop sharing about their kids online to protect their privacy.

How states rank in sharing political opinions on social media. (Graph: Secure Data Recovery)

Where Americans share politics on social media most

Along with being a platform for baby pictures and life updates, social media has also become a battleground for political discourse, where many people use their platforms to voice their opinions on a wide range of issues. However, when it comes to politics, there is a delicate balance between sharing your opinion and irritating your audience. Over half of Americans (56 percent) say they have unfollowed/unfriended someone for oversharing their political views.

The most common political activity Americans partake in on social media is engaging in another’s political post, sharing criticism about a candidate and sharing praise for a candidate. While you can come across political content online in any state, the states where people are sharing the most political content on their social media are Massachusetts, Maine and Kentucky.

While social media can be a source of entertainment, connection and networking, it is important to remember its dangers. Take time to think about what you are sharing and the audience who will view it.

While people typically don’t risk their security on purpose with their posts, sensitive information commonly ends up there on accident. Whether it is a picture of your child that has their school name on their shirt, a post about how great your lawn is looking with your house’s number in the background or a post about your vacation confirmation that shows your sensitive details, it is important to be alert about your digital footprint.

Article writte by Scott McMacken