Social Media Protection and Safety Tips

Social media can be fun! So many of us start and end our days with our real families on one hand and online families in the other. As platforms continue to evolve, it’s a good idea to educate yourself and your family on ways to keep their information protected. Below are some tips that will help you and your family to be a little more private.

Overall Safety of Personal Information

Don’t post personal email addresses- doing so means advertisers can’t scan your address book.

Email addresses: business and personal; open a new email account only for professional communication only. This prevents connecting your personal identity with your professional one.

Keep new friends on a limited profile until you’re sure they’re safe to share personal information with.

Block bots to keep them from obtaining your information for scamming purposes.

Educate yourself on phishing scams and steer clear of them on social media.

Privacy

Privacy Preferences– check privacy settings on social media platforms to make sure they’re set so only the people you want to see your posts can.

Passwords– have you considered cryptic and long passwords? They are the best. If you have trouble remembering them, try using a password manager. These programs keep passwords safe by encrypting them in a secure digital vault.

Digital Security– consider two-factor authentication on social media accounts and email; it is a good idea. Also, adblocking extension in the browser to keep pop-ups and ads from loading malware onto your computer. 

Posting Content

Online Identity– Use account preferences to control the information visible to the public and what can only be seen privately. Facebook is the biggest aggregate of personal data of all social platforms. Limit permissions to help keep your personal information private.

Chatting/Instant Messages– have you met this person in person? Use caution online when talking to strangers and make sure the kids are protected by monitoring their online interactions.

Photos– Only the photos that a boss, parent, or child would be ok seeing. When posting photos, disable GPS so no one can view your location. And remember, even if photos are deleted, they can be permanently found online.

Identity Theft/Stolen Identity

Identity theft caused by social media reached 164.7 million cases in 2019.  Using these tips will help. As the world, business, workforces continue to transition into global relationships/connections/partnerships, social media will be in higher demand. It’s smart to teach your family how to keep their info and identities private. For more protection, an insurance agent can always help.