precautions while using facebook

Precautions while using Facebook

Facebook is an online social networking service headquartered in Menlo Park, California.
31. Privecy policies
While you are limiting the information you post on social networks, you will need to take the precaution of privacy policies when social networking. There are social networks that have very strong privacy setting. Use those setting and make sure that only your friends, people that you personally know, can get to what you post. Also if new people want to be your friend, use great caution.
32. Make sure they are friendly friends
The precautions you need to take when you are practicing online social networking are extremely crucial when dealing with strangers, or new friends. When you get a new friend request you need to be very careful. This may be an innocent person who is very honest, but it could be a predator looking to steel you identity of give your computer a virus. You should always scan these emails and any attachments they have before opening them. Always have your firewall on the highest you can to help prevent predators from getting to your information.
33. What stays posted
Another precaution to take when practicing online social networking is to limit what you say or post. When you put something, whether it is written word or pictures or whatever, you will want to only post what you wont mind millions of people seeing. Online social networking is not your personal diary. Millions of people can get access to what you post. And what you post will stay online forever. You may delete it, but it has most likely gone on someone elses computer and they will have the ability to put it online again. It never comes off.
34. Who would want my photo
One precaution to take to help prevent others from taking your photo is to distort your photos a little bit. You can do this by adding a little fuzz or smearing the photo a little. You dont want your photos to be used by anyone you do not know.
35. Family and friends
Also use precaution when you post something about your friends and family when you are practicing online social networking. You should always have your families and friends permission before you post anything about them or any pictures of them. You want to use precautions with yourself and those you are involved with when online social networking.
36. Dont post your address online
Dont post your address online. If someone has your full name and knows the area where you live, they can find you online. If they can figure out when youll be gone, youre inviting disaster. Ensure your computer is up to date and has good antivirus protection; social networking sites are frequent targets of malware attacks.
37. Do not place your personal information on your Facebook profile
As your residential address, your phone number, your cell phone number, your date of birth will all become very public information instantly and it will come back to haunt you in many ways. Check your profile constantly to ensure that you are not displaying personal information. The risk of identity theft or being tracked down by others is too great. If your friend really needs your contact information, then have them give you a call or send a private email outside of Facebook. Nothing is scarier than your ex boyfriend or ex girlfriend calling you out of the blue or finding out that a new credit card was taken out in your name on the other side of the country by an ex con.
38. Be careful when placing photographs of you or your children on Facebook
Please ensure that you have all your privacy settings set to maximum. There was a reported instance of a family photo being snapped up and used for commercial purposes. One family was surprised to find their Facebook family photo on a billboard in Europe.
39. Do not ever think that your Facebook page is private amongst only your friends and family
Job interviewers, lawyers, investigators, the police, and the entire world will be searching for information on your Facebook site at some point. Most people will need a lawyer whether it is for a divorce, a speeding ticket, a personal injury lawsuit or a work related injury. I have personally seen instances where parties to a lawsuit and witnesses have posted items on their Facebook site which was subsequently used later in a job interview or a deposition or even in court. Do not think for one second that anything you post will ever be kept private. Your whole life is up for dissection and a simple Google search on your name will pull up your Facebook profile. Try it.
40. Do not accept all Friend Requests
Of course the purpose of Facebook is to socially connect with people you know. However, not every Friend Request is legitimate. There have been reported instances of private investigators, police officers, sex offenders and the like creating fake accounts to gain access to you online. If you do not know the person, then do not add them to your accepted friends. Again, as soon as they gain access, they will be searching your personal information, your postings, and viewing all of your photos. Keep your list of accepted friends and family close as you would in the non digital world. The cute guy or girl that emails a Friend Request to you may just be the private investigator that has been hired to dig up dirt on you.