precautions while using social networking sites

Prevents another user from searching and viewing your profile; you can ban access temporarily or permanently. It is impossible and illegal to stop employees from using social networking sites 24/7 and even if it were legal it wouldnt be a good idea as it could easily alienate your employees. The best course of action is to educate your employees. Below is a list of the top 10 security precautions an employee should keep in mind when using social networks.

Use caution when clicking a link to another page or running an online application, even if it is from someone you know. Many applications embedded within social networking sites require you to share your information when you use them. Attackers use these sites to distribute their malware.

Be careful who you add as a friend, or what groups or pages you join. The more friends you have or groups/pages you join, the more people who have access to your information. Companies are looking for ways to prevent company confidential and proprietary information from slipping through the firewall. Most incidents probably occur via email or file transfers but IM chat tools, blog posts, Twitter messages and even online resume content could disclose proprietary company information. Even using social networking sites on company time or using company resources could be a violation of the companys acceptable use policy. Before you become the corporate poster child for some publically humiliating episode from using social networks at work, check your corporate AUP to make sure you arent violating the policy.

Use discretion before posting information or commenting about anything. Once information is posted online, it can potentially be viewed by anyone and may not be retracted afterwards. Keep in mind that content or communications on governmentrelated social networking pages may be considered public rec

Configure privacy settings to allow only those people you trust to have access to the information you post. Also, restrict the ability for others to post information to your page. The default settings for some sites may allow anyone to see your information or post information to your page; these settings should be changed.

Review a sites privacy policy. Some sites may share information such as email addresses or user preferences with other parties. If a sites privacy policy is vague or does not properly protect your information, do not use the site. If youve just joined a social networking site, or even if you have been a user for some time, log onto your account and view and adjust the privacy settings

Information such as a persons social security number, street address, phone number, financial information, or confidential business information should not be published online. Similarly, posting photos, videos or audio files could lead to an organizations breach of confidentiality or an individuals breach of privacy.

Security and privacy related to social networking sites are fundamentally behavioral issues, not technology issues. The more information a person posts, the more information becomes available for a potential compromise by those with malicious intentions. People who provide private, sensitive or confidential information about themselves or other people, whether wittingly or unwittingly, pose a higher risk to themselves and others.

Social networking means opening up and sharing information online with others, but theres some information you should never share online. Protecting yourself from sharing Too Much Information(TMI) cansave you from identity theft and even protect your physical safety.So lets start with the obvious

Social networking sites increasingly give users more control over their own privacy settings. Dont assume you have to take whatever default settings the site gives you. Check out the settings, configuration and privacy sections to see what options you have to limit who and what groups can see various aspects of your personal information. Facebook probably has some of the broadest privacy options, giving you control where no one, friends, friends and networks, or everyone can see basic info, personal info, photos, friends and postings.