Staying Safe on Facebook: Tips for Protecting Your Privacy
Facebook has become one of the most popular online platforms today, with over 2.6 billion active monthly users. It is an impressive achievement and provides users with global opportunities to communicate and stay connected. With such a vast user network, the need for staying safe on Facebook is paramount. The success of the platform has come with a price— privacy concerns continue to grow and staying safe on Facebook is no longer a leisurely, if any, by-product of activity on the platform.
While keeping safety in mind, users must be vigilant in not only posting appropriate content but also understanding and protecting their privacy on the platform. This article provides several tips to help secure your private account information to remain safe on Facebook.
Set Your Privacy Settings
The first and most important tip to staying safe on Facebook is to set your Privacy Settings. Facebook’s Privacy Settings offer a variety of options to keep your account, content, and profile as secure as possible.
By “Tightening Your Security Settings,” users can control who has access to their posts by selecting who can comment, tag, and see loved ones’ posts. Additionally, users can limit the amount of personal information shared on the profile through privacy settings.
If necessary, users can also hide their profile from general search engine lookups to prevent strangers from accessing the profile. By going through the available Privacy Settings, users can customize what is visible to whom and get the most out of their profile.
Create a Strong Password
Creating a strong, secure password is key to staying safe on Facebook. First, it is important to have a password that cannot be easily identified. Common passwords such as “12345” or “password” should not be used as they are some of the most widely-recognized passwords that cybercriminals would use to gain access to the account.
Strong passwords are composed of at least 8 characters and contain uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and symbols. Users should not use any personal information (e.g., birthdays, names, etc.) that can be associated with their account and leaked. Additionally, users should also remember to create a different password for each account on the internet for tougher protection.
Be Careful about Downloads
Another tip to staying safe on Facebook is to be careful when downloading files. Malware and viruses can be embedded into files, resulting in serious privacy risks. To protect against this, users should not open any emails they receive from unknown sources or click on any external links that may be suspicious.
Additionally, users should scan all downloads before opening them with anti-virus programs and never give out personal information such as banking details or passwords to anyone on the internet.
Use Two Factor Authentication
Two-factor authentication is one of the most secure ways to protect one’s account. Social media accounts, such as Facebook, have the feature of two-factor authentication that requires a user to enter a pin in order to access their account.
This adds an extra layer of protection as no one will be able to access one’s account even if they know the password. Two-factor authentication can be set up manually, and the process does not take more than a few minutes.
Check Activity Logs
It is important to keep track of activity on the account to identify any suspicious activity and react quickly. By routinely checking activity logs, users can identify any potential security threat in their account.
Facebook also allows users to monitor their page likes, posts, messages, profile changes, and other activities to stay connected with their account at all times. Additionally, checking your activity logs also helps in identifying any malicious activities from third-parties.
Be Aware of Public Wi-Fi
Another key component to staying safe on Facebook is to be aware of public Wi-Fi. Public Wi-Fi networks are generally unsecured and vulnerable to cyber attackers, so users should exercise caution when using such networks in order to maintain their privacy and safety.
Since these networks may be prone to data leakage, users should not open their Facebook account or enter any kind of information while being connected. It is especially important to never conduct any online transactions or enter any type of payment information while connected to public Wi-Fi networks.
Stay Alert to Spams
Facebook is known to have spam messages circulating around. Users should be aware of such spam messages and avoid clicking on them. Users should also be aware of suspicious messages and emails sent by unknown contacts and delete them without opening or responding to them.
Additionally, users should also be careful while clicking on links shared in messages, especially if they are from unknown contacts. It is best practice to stay alert and never open any links or messages from anyone you don’t know personally.
Staying safe on Facebook is important, as users are exposed to a wide variety of people. While Facebook does have its own privacy settings for users to configure their accounts, it is also important to adhere to other safety tips such as setting strong passwords, avoiding downloading from unknown sources, using two-factor authentication, monitoring activity logs, being careful with public Wi-fi, and staying alert to spams. By adopting these best practices, users can keep their accounts secure and safe.