Sorry to hear what happened with your late sister, it really shows a lack of polish on their part. My friend set mine up with completely fake information just so I could get messages from him since he wasn't on Twitter. Good old Startpage! love em! As for FB, in the beginning, no one had any reason not to trust them or any fear that they would become what they are today.

One thing that shocked me a few years ago, was seeing in real-time a notification that a friend was doing something on Facebook I know they would not have wanted their friends to know about. I also remember when Leo Laporte found out that anyone could add him to a group without his knowledge or permission (just think of how that could be abused).

I have not used a VPN yet, but I agree that is very smart on your part. I may decide to take the jump this year as well. It's funny, my overseas friends didn't know who this "John Doe type" character was who was making a friend request! :) Good on you for deciding to retain some of your digital privacy.