It’s your decision to choose what you share on social media, but what others choose to do with your data or information may not be always in your control. We are living in a digital age, they say that data is probably the biggest weapon one can use in the modern world, that’s because whoever controls the data, controls the world.
There are several reasons to keep your activity on social media under wraps and it is your responsibility to safeguard your data and whereabouts from stalkers, cybercriminals and others.
Here are 9 ways that can help you manage your social media privacy settings.
Check who can see your profile: A very elementary setting on social media apps that tells you who can view your profile. You can set your account’s visibility to the public, friends of friends, or to the circle of your close friends.
How can people find you on social media apps? You can set how and where people can find you, via recommendation lists or search engines.
Update your friend lists: When the people in your friend list aren’t the people you know or have met, it could be a good idea to unfriend them so that they don’t see what you share. Additionally, if losing the number of connections isn’t something you’re comfortable with then you could choose the option of custom sharing within the apps. If you wish to share your posts with certain people, social media apps have the option to do so.
Manage App Permissions and Preferences: Be cautious about granting permissions to third-party apps that request access to your social media accounts. Review and revoke app permissions for any apps you no longer use or trust. You can also set ad preferences in the social media privacy settings. Keep in mind that there’s no way you can hide all the ads, as social media apps will always control the ads, but you can adjust the ads you see in the social media privacy settings with your preferences.
Enhance the security by two-factor authentication: You can lower the chances of your account being hacked or being taken over by choosing the two-factor authentication (2FA) and a stronger password. Two-factor authentication or two-step authentication is a process of security where users give two separate authentication factors to verify themselves. It’s a double layer of security to your data. Not implementing 2FA is dangerous, if a data breach occurs and the hackers get access to your data or credentials then the aftermath could be extreme as you could lose your reputation and money, or you can experience identity theft as well.
Review Tagging Settings: Adjust tagging settings to control who can tag you in posts and photos, and who can see posts you're tagged in. You can usually choose to review tags before they appear on your profile.
Look for your location settings: Many social media platforms automatically include the location data on the posts you share. This social media privacy setting can help you hide your geolocation.
Check Privacy Policies: Take the time to read and understand the privacy policies of the social media platforms you use. Knowing how your data is being collected, stored, and shared can help you make informed decisions about your account’s settings.
Safety of your children matters: Parents want to protect their kids from communicating with online predators and viewing explicit adult content. Most social media apps have the settings to restrict these pages from being shown along with chatting to strangers.
Wrapping it Up!
Managing your social media privacy settings is crucial for maintaining control over who can see your posts, personal information, and interactions online. Social media apps may be required to take some steps to protect their user’s privacy in the future to keep them safe. Until then, you can take these steps to protect your privacy. You can also use VPN to protect your data and restrict the amount of information that firms can mine from your browsing activities.
Stay Informed and keep up with news and updates related to social media privacy and security. Follow official accounts or reputable sources that provide information about privacy tips, data breaches, and platform updates.
Also Read: Cybersecurity for E-commerce: Protecting Your Online Store
