Social Media Sites Becoming The New Face Of Divorce
MIAMI (CBS4) - If you're like most people, you've probably checked out an ex-boyfriend's Facebook page or looked up an old girlfriend on Classmates.com.
But this seemingly harmless behavior is going a lot further, and leading to the end of more and more marriages.
"He left his Facebook up one day and there was a whole other life," said one woman, who does not want to be identified because of embarrassment.
She was shocked to find that that her husband had relationships with a handful of other women online.
"I was shocked because i thought everything was great," said the woman.
"People are getting into treacherous terrain on Facebook, rekindling memories, relationships," said Attorney Ann Carrozza.
Carrozza told CBS4's Lisa Petrillo that she has countless clients whose marriages have been ruined by social media.
It's absolutely devastating, it rocks someone's world and I see it every week," said Ann.
It's so common, there's even a website called FacebookCheating.com.
"We're seeing emails and stories coming in every day," said FacebookCheating.com creator Craig Gross.
Gross said the site documents the stories of hundreds of people have written about their spouses stepping out on them, with the help of the social media site .
"The site is basically a place where you can go for help or community when it comes to people cheating on Facebook," said Gross.
But cheating isn't the only off-shoot of social media misuse.
"It made me sick to my stomach," said another woman, who also asked not be identified.
This woman decided to check out her husband's Facebook page and was shocked to find he was writing derogatory and threatening comments about her.
"I just couldn't believe it," she said.
Ultimately, it lead her to file for divorce.
"It did give me a glimpse into him that I hadn't seen," she said.
And there are countless other examples of "marriage ending" online behaviors.
Another woman says she found out her husband wanted a divorce because he posted it on his Facebook page.
"Who decides 'I don't want to be with my wife anymore' and instead of arranging a meeting like a decent human being, I'm going to tell her on Facebook?" said the woman.
Attorney Bari Weinberger says too many people fail to realize everything they say and do on these sites, can and will be used against them.
And that can mean a change in alimony payments, a change in child custody, and so much more, depending on what you post.
"The evidence is shocking and the courts are starting to rely heavily upon it," said Bari Weinberger
"You have a husband saying I'm out of money, business is terrible and all of a sudden you see him on Facebook or YouTube and he's sitting on his new Mercedes," said attorney Jeff Landers.
Facebook is now boasting 901 million active monthly users.
