Social Networking Privacy Makeover
With everybody enjoying social networking it’s easy to get too comfortable putting our private lives out in public.
In a recent CBC article, Granby resident, Nathalie Blanchard, reminds us of the dangers of posting personal photos to sites like Facebook.
Blanchard suffers from depression. When her insurance company saw her party pics they figured she was better. Now she has to go to court to get her disability benefits back.
More people are looking at your social networking accounts than you think. Chances are your Facebook profile says a lot more about you than your Linkedin profile.Here are some tips to give your accounts a privacy makeover: Use an alias. Recheck and maximize your privacy settings.
- Use an alias.
- Don’t add people you don’t know.
- If somebody you’re unsure about requests you, message them before accepting.
- People slip through the cracks: revisit your friend list once a month and go through each person. Delete as needed.
- Think wisely before posting pictures of party nights: If you wouldn’t tape it to the wall of your office or stick it in a frame for Grandma, it shouldn’t be online.
- Be a defensive social networker: untag photos of yourself and disable your wall comments.
- Want to be extra careful? Duck out of photos in potentially scandalous situations. You never know who’ll be uploading tomorrow.
- Tell your friends so they respect your privacy too.
It may seem like overkill but the chuckles you get from your birthday party album are worth less than your job or your self-respect.
Caroline (Faithful M2O Intern)
