Do you know all of your “friends”? This is just one simple step in protecting yourself while using the wildly popular Facebook. Now, everyone from teens to Grandmas are sharing information online which could be dangerous if users are not careful.
Here are some simple precautions if you have a Facebook account:
- Do not put too much information on your profile. There is no reason to share your phone number, home address, or email address. The people you are sharing with should already have this information.
- Familiarize yourself with all of the security settings. You are able to control how people search for you on Facebook; limit this information so as to not attract strangers. Also, set your “share settings” to stay within your friends. Don’t broadcast your life to the world.
- Don’t reveal your location. Whether you post pictures of yourself from the Bahamas or check-in at “Home”, you can be opening up your house for a burglary. Post pictures of your vacation when you return and don’t tell people where you are at all times.
- Scrutinize the information you share, don’t overshare. Many Facebook users have become too comfortable and use it as an online diary sharing too much personal information. If an online diary is what you are looking for, look into starting your own blog on another site.
- Don’t click on links. Before you click on the link for a video or product one of your friends is promoting, think twice and look at t he address bar. Make sure it says “facebook.com/”, not something like “facebook33.php”, those are signs of a phisher who will hack your account.
- Manage photos carefully. Be careful not to post pictures of yourself in compromising situations and make sure your friends don’t post them either. Your boss or college admissions officer doesn’t want to see you dancing on the bar. If a friend posts an unflattering picture of you, untag yourself in the photo so it doesn’t remain in “photos of you” on your account. Better yet, use the security settings to only allow pictures on your timeline after you have approved them.
- Change your password once in a while. Hackers are able to get into Facebook accounts, especially ones with easy passwords. Create a password with numbers, letters, and symbols, using both upper and lower case letters. The stronger your password, the less likely it will be compromised.
- Don’t use Facebook to meet people. It is not meant to be an online dating service. Opening up your information to the world could be asking for trouble. Use a dating website that has security measures built in.
- Choose your friends wisely. Make sure you know and have met in person everyone you friend. Also, although time consuming, it is very helpful to create friend lists. You can categorize the people you know so that when you share information, you are able to be more selective about who you share with.
- Limit your apps. Many popular games on Facebok like Farmville have been known to sell personal information to outside ad firms.
Following these tips will give you an advantage to staying safe online, but remember online activity becomes a permanent record, so you can never be too cautious.
Written By Amy Murphy, TLC Computer Solutions, Las Vegas, NV
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