Social Media Safety: Five Methods to Reduce Your Risk

Social Media Safety

In the age of instant gratification, there are those who crave immediate connection and they want it as conveniently as possible. Let’s take a minute to evaluate what that means. It means they have apps and websites that save their passwords so they are not bothered with logging in. It means they share every moment – every move is photographed and logged for all to see. And, herein lies the problem. What is considered “connected” is actually the offline equivalent of leaving your windows up, doors open and walking around in your bathrobe.

Think that’s crazy? Consider these statistics: Per Facebook’s 2016 financial statement they logged 1.23 billion daily active users. Let that sink in for a moment. That number doesn’t represent total profiles, that is active users. If that isn’t enough, McAfee reported in a study conducted in 2012 that 92.6% of teens surveyed had witnessed cyber bullying on Facebook versus 23.8% on Twitter. Not convinced? Sex offenders are on Facebook! A CBS news article this past February discussed a law pending before the Supreme Court to ban sex offenders from Facebook. Finally, there is identity theft. According to the ID Theft Center’s annual Aftermath Study, an identity is stolen every 79 seconds, with 9% of those occurring via social media accounts. So, the next time you log in, consider the following to hopefully help reduce the risks encountered in this social media setting.

5. LOG OUT. Staying logged in leaves you open to hacks, data mining and viruses.

4. Change your password often and don’t let your app or browser save it. This should be the rule with any app or website, not just social media sites. If someone steals your phone or computer and you are logged or passwords are saved, the criminal now has access to all your banking information, email and other sensitive information that can ruin your credit and cause more headaches than anyone needs.

3. Stop oversharing and using GPS location. If you post pictures, locations and plans, you tell an infinite number of criminals where you are, who you are, who your family is and what your routine is. The criminal can then determine the best time to rob your house, abduct your kids or worse.

2. Do not shop via social media links.  There are more fakes, hacks and phishing sites advertised on social media than anyone could imagine. They are designed to steal your information and your money.

1. Never, ever accept friend requests from anyone you haven’t had a face to face conversation with. If you don’t personally know them, delete it. If you have a bad relationship with this person offline, DO NOT accept the request. They aren’t interested in reconciling, they are spying. Friends of friends could be the criminals mentioned above. Use offline safety sense online to reduce your risk.

If you are one of the lucky ones who’ve not experienced anything bad from being on social media and are not convinced that there are risks, do a quick Google search for “dangers of Facebook” or “social media risks”. Read a few of those articles and you may change your mind or at least your routine.

If you have questions about any of this information or you think that your data or computer is at risk, call us. We will help you in anyway we can. The advice is always free.