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---
title: Geotagging Safaris Can Lead To Poaching
description: Geotagged safari pictures might be leading poachers directly to their prey
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article:published_time: 2014-05-07T20:22:35.000Z
article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:09:28.747Z
og:title: Poachers May Be Using Geotagged Photos to Find Their Prey
og:description: Maybe stick to foodstagramming
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# Stick to Foodstagramming: Poachers May Be Following Your Safari Pictures

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by 

[Laura Stampler](https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/)


## Laura Stampler


May 7, 2014 8:22 PM UTC

by 

[Laura Stampler](https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/)


## Laura Stampler


May 7, 2014 8:22 PM UTC

You might want to limit your Instagram activity to your brunch excursions. It turns out that [geotagging the endangered rhinoceri](http://qz.com/206069/geotagged-safari-photos-could-lead-poachers-right-to-endangered-rhinos/) you saw on Safari on has far darker connotations than letting your social media following know where you got that breakfast burrito.

A [photograph tweeted by Eleni de Wet](https://twitter.com/Adampasick/status/463270048522440704), a branding and marketing company owner in South Africa, suggests that geotagged photos are leading poachers directly to their prey:

> [](https://twitter.com/Adampasick/status/463270048522440704)

While this image has only [recently been making its rounds online](http://gizmodo.com/poachers-can-use-your-geotagged-safari-photos-to-hunt-d-1572906832), conservationists have been concerned about the dangers of geotracking for some time.

[In a 2012 interview with the Sunday Times](http://qz.com/206069/geotagged-safari-photos-could-lead-poachers-right-to-endangered-rhinos/), a marketing representative of South Africa’s National Parks explained how poachers are using basic technology to kill endangered species. The method is to send a young couple on safari with a GPS-enabled smartphone, which they use to take a photo of the rhino,” Marc Reading said. “The exact co-ordinates are attached to the picture, allowing poachers to come in after dark and track the animal.”

The [concern has also been raised by marine life enthusiasts](https://www.flickr.com/groups/underwater-australasia/discuss/72157614301598095/) who worry that taking a picture of a fish could make it a target of aquarium enthusiasts.

While technology can be a good thing for the preservation of wild animals—[drones have been used to track poachers](https://www.thedodo.com/drone-army-to-protect-and-save-524449274.html)—it also has a darker side.

([_Quartz_](http://qz.com/206069/geotagged-safari-photos-could-lead-poachers-right-to-endangered-rhinos/))

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