Social media is fun, convenient, and in a lot of cases FREE. However, we must understand that by choosing to use social media, we are choosing to accept a certain level of social media privacy risk.
For example, when we excitedly post pictures of our plane whisking us off to a tropical vacation. We are inspired to share and celebrate the event with friends and family. At the same time, we also potentially let nefarious actors know that our home may be empty for the coming days . . .
With all this sharing going on how do we protect ourselves from social media threats and the potential manipulation of our personal information?
Virtual Networking Comes with Social Media Privacy Risk
Social media threats include social engineering, targeted phishing attacks, fake accounts, celebrity name misuse, site compromise, and more. For example, cyber criminals could obtain your personal information to steal your identity. During the recent government shut down, victims were unable to report that their identities had been stolen because those offices were not operating.
The very nature of social media encourages us to share insights and pictures from our personal and professional lives on a daily basis. However, we must understand social media comes with inherent privacy risks.
Social Media Privacy Best Practices
Check out our team’s latest social media privacy risk mitigation tips:
- Use a password manager with two-factor authentication. Some examples are LastPass or Dashlane. These allow you to generate a random and site unique password with the longest allowable character length. Then, apply two-factor authentication to your password manager account. Turn on two-factor authentication for all social media sites.
- Keep your mobile apps updated. Make sure that you have the latest version of a platform.
- Manage your privacy settings. The default privacy settings on many social media websites are typically broad and may permit sharing of information to an online community. Ensure that you are only sharing information with friends and family. Check your settings regularly for changes.
- Disable auto login. Make sure your apps are not set to automatically log you in. Do not set your computer’s browser to “remember” your login credentials. As a result, if someone does acquire access to your devices, they cannot automatically access your social sites
- Be selective when accepting a friend or network link. Do you really know that their profile is real and not fake? Only “friend” people you know in the real world.
- Exercise caution when clicking on links. Hackers prey on social networks because you are more likely to click on links from friends. Be wary of offers with the word “free” in them or that sound too good to be true, as they usually are.
- Avoid accessing your social media accounts on public wireless connections. When using a public wireless network for Internet access, use a VPN service.
- Establish a unique email for social media accounts. By using a unique email, if you are compromised, a hacker will not have access to your information.
- Be aware that the information you share on one social network may be linked to another social network. Check your settings regularly for updates.
- Do not reveal personal information. Be suspicious of anyone who asks for your personal information online. Never share your home address, phone number, Social Security number, or other personal identifying information.
- Close old accounts. Do not risk leaving personal data in an old account that you have not used for years. Instead, close the accounts and delete as much personal information from them as possible.
- Give false answers for password recovery options. Store them in a password manager.
Convenience Comes with Social Media Privacy Risk
In conclusion, know that if you choose to engage in social media that you are choosing to accept a certain level of social media privacy risk. Above all, remember the Internet is permanent. Assume that once you put information on a site, it stays there forever. Even if you delete the account, you don’t know if someone has already printed or copied your text or photos off of it.
Contact GPSG at cyberteam@gpsg.co for a free consultation on Cybersecurity & IT Innovation Sprints.