I received an out-of-office reply stating:
"I am at (location blocked) for an assessment, so I'll be out from 1-10 July."
Since the location was in a different country, it tells me his home will be vacant. Additionally, the message states how long he'll be out, so it's a good indicator on how long he'll be out of the house.
Oh, you say that I don't know where he lives?
With a little reserach, I could probably find out where he lives, since people tend to post too much on Facebook (as mentioned in our post "Status Update Overload?") and data aggregators (like Spokeo or Pipl) typically provide address/contact information.
For those unaware of the digital data aggregators, they search through the internet, public record databases and elements in the deep web. If you haven't used either Spokeo or Pipl, I suggest you give it a try. They do a more indepth search than Google or any other typical search engine. There is more information about you out there than you realize.
Once I find an address, it's time to do some surveillance...I prefer to start out with Google Earth, which lets me do extensive research of the area visually, as well as develop routes of travel, all from the comfort of my home. Additionally, I can find out how far his home is from local law enforcement, which allows me to calculate the response time.
Then I do a drive through the neighborhood and by the house to see if there are any other indicators that the house is not occupied, such as lawn unkept, no vehicles in the drive way, or multiple newspapers laying at the end of the driveway.
But back to the out-of-office reply. Is it really necessary to tell me exactly where you are? I'm certain that the important people with a valid reason to know, know where you're at and why you're out, so you don't need to advertise it in your out-of-office that automatically goes out to anybody who happens to send you an email.
What should the out-of-office reply state? How do you prevent me from going down this rabbit hole? Check out the below.
"I am currently out of the office from 1-10 July and will not be able to respond."
Nice, simple and straight to the point. It accomplishes the point without giving out more than required.