When burglars are looking for a home to raid, many of them now turn to social networking services to find out when the occupants of a home are not on the premises so they can strike without being detected.

According to a study carried out to mark security firm Friedland’s UK Home Security Week 2011, 78 percent of ex-robbers say that they strongly believe social networking tools such as Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare are being used by active thieves to identify properties to target. Meanwhile, 74 percent of the 50 former burglars who were questioned for the survey think Google Street View is being used by current thieves to identify properties to steal from.

The study also revealed that the average time it takes to carry out a home robbery is 10 minutes. The ex-robbers believe the most common mistake homeowners make is leaving windows open (94 percent) followed by leaving valuables in clear view of passers by (78 percent) and sharing their status and location on social networking services (54 percent).

We’ve all heard stories about how social networking is to blame for burglaries. However, as long as you think carefully about what you share online before you post it, you shouldn’t have anything to worry about. There are plenty of privacy options you can take advantage of on Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare (which recently offered a new way to hide your home address) to protect your privacy, but perhaps avoiding posting anything about where you live is the best way to avoid burglars identifying your home as a possible target.