Double check that pin: The dark side of Pinterest

You’ve wasted…I mean spent…hours on Pinterest. So many shiny objects to distract me, but my usual skeptical instinct is not enforce.

That pretty photo of chuck roast, do you know where it came from? That nifty picture of a headboard you’ll never make…where did that originate? None of these questions cross your mind.  You’re pinning!! You’re thinking of all the cool stuff you’ll do one day, but never actually get to do. You’re not thinking of spam or hackers. I’m guilty of doing this…mostly because I’m lazy, but also because I’m a little naive.

While at Bloggy Boot Camp, someone mentioned the nefarious side of Pinterest.  There are spambots on the Pinterest.  That pretty photo might not point to the site listed.  It could direct you to a site rife with viruses.  See this cool phone nook idea?

Cute right?  When I lived in San Francisco, I used to see these phone nooks in all of the cool old apartments. Of course, they were for landlines, but this is for charging your cell phone or storing your purse. But I digress.

See the website listed on this image?  Seems legit right? WRONG

Luckily, Pinterest is getting better about sniffing these things out…which is good for those of us distracted by pot pies.

So, my friends, do everyone a favor and double check the link from which that pretty picture came. You might be spreading the spam if you don’t.

The best thing to do is pin directly from the source. That way you know you’ve visited the site and actually saw the blog post or article detailing how to create that cool phone nook.