That "random" picture that will get you tracked

Watch out for reflections in sunglasses. Buildings are recognizable. An obvious location will betray a not-so-obvious one!

Over the course of the last week, I tweeted a couple of seemingly “random” pictures in order to demonstrate how easy it is to figure out your location, even if you’ve taken some care to crop out any identifying features/used an angle that doesn’t make it obvious where you are.

‘Tis the season, so the first one featured a pumpkin:

Natalia Antonova 🦉🕯 @NataliaAntonova

The fall harvest is sorted! I’m working on my new #geolocation report and getting ready to make more concrete announcements on my social media classes. Feel free to geolocate this photo if you like/tell me about notable details. All in the name of #onlinesafety, of course.

A lot of people who are new to geolocation would take a look at this photo and say, “Wow, it’s probably very hard/almost impossible to figure out your exact location.” Ahaha. Ahahahahahaha.

It was a lazy Sunday, so I was precisely geolocated a few hours later (most people want to relax during the weekend instead of stalking me for the sake of promoting online safety — I can’t blame them!):

Steve Corrozi @Corrozi

@J_Nutter @NataliaAntonova 801 N. Carolina, SE

Here is that beautiful church that Steve pinpointed as my location on Google Maps:

Again, if you’re new to this, you’re going, “No way, Natalia, what the hell?” If you’re not, you’re laughing to yourself.

There are many *forensic* ways to analyze the photo, but let’s learn to Think Like A Creep™️ here. The big clue is the pumpkin, as Ken Campbell noted:

ken @K_D_Campbell

@NataliaAntonova -placement of scarf (quite fetching btw) hides presence of mask visible is other SM pics -foliage and pumpkin indicate season -avoska speaks to heritage or hipster. Or both. -no one is lugging a pumpkin long distance; this is relatively near destination

If you look at my other social media feeds (which creeps ALWAYS do), you can find an open air market from that day, as also noted by Ken:

ken @K_D_Campbell

@NataliaAntonova -it's Sunday, other SM pics depict an open air market, there are only so many of those -previous challenges in certain area of DC -thus, this was taken after leaving that location, in the vicinity of an historic building, possibly a church or former church or related building.

My Twitter says I live in Washington D.C. Combine the open air market scene with a specific-looking building AND fence, and voila! You can find me as easily as a pumpkin during blessed Halloween season.

Here’s another “random” photo that’s not random at all:

Natalia Antonova 🦉🕯 @NataliaAntonova

Where was this picture taken? What’s notable about it? This is an easy #OSINT/#geolocation exercise for everyone who doesn’t have time to do one during the week If you’re a beginner & need help, refer to my newsletter (link in bio) — all previous games discuss methodology!

Wow, there’s, like, nothing there! Just a tree that appears to be having a hard time staying upright and some water, right?

Lol, less than 10 minutes after I posted this picture, David knew exactly where I was, albeit he initially misstated that it was Lincoln (I believe he meant Jefferson):

David Sasse @dejsasse

@NataliaAntonova On the Potomac river. Near the Lincoln Memorial.

He followed that up with the precise location:

David Sasse @dejsasse

@NataliaAntonova

Here’s another precise geolocation, clocking in at 20 minutes or so:

JollyRoger @ImJollyRoger

@NataliaAntonova

Whatever route you took to figure out my exact spot, as Jonny noted, one look at my social media from the previous day would give you enough clues to narrow down your search, even if you don’t pay attention to the finer points of digital forensics:

jonny klemchuk @jonnyklemchuk

@genealogist_CA @NataliaAntonova You also know that she was playing your guide for her friend yesterday so it narrows it down considerably knowing that it’s probably a spot located that folks would see/want to see if they’re visiting.

Well, would you look at that!

Natalia Antonova 🦉🕯 @NataliaAntonova

You guys might have a hard time geolocating my friend — but I believe in you 😤

This was a joke tweet (and a “please admire this stylish woman” tweet) — my friend is obviously standing on the steps of the Jefferson Memorial — but I was also modeling the kind of social media behavior that can help a potential stalker (or a creepy foreign intel person, if you have a sensitive job) to track you down later.

Simply put, your obvious locations give away your not-so-obvious locations. Stalkers (and spies) cross-reference your data. It’s as simple to do as to take a long walk in our nation’s capital wearing trainers and, if you’re like me, a pair of leopard print loafers (what’s a geolocation challenge without good shoes?).

But wait, it gets better. Let’s zoom in on my sunglasses in the photo by the tree:

Yup, that’s the reflection of the Tidal Basin. Nobody said anything about it publicly, but two people DM’d me about it. Talking about zooming in on photos in public made them feel creepy and uncomfortable. And that’s good! That’s a fairly normal reaction! Except — stalkers love being creepy, that’s the whole definition of a stalker. This is the stuff they zoom in on. This is what you should keep in mind if you have privacy concerns online.

Thinking about the potential implications of your digital footprint is not pleasant — not in the beginning. When you know what you are doing and know how your information can be used, you end up having less surprises in life. And I don’t know about you, but I am done with surprises at the moment.

Please purchase a $5 per month subscription (or a different plan) if you learned something new today. The support of my subscribers makes a huge difference to me. Please send this article to your relatives, because it honestly breaks my heart how many people don’t understand what they are potentially putting out there.