Social networking sites are used by many people worldwide. They can be accessed by anyone so therefore we must protect our privacy as best as we can. There are several things that I do to protect my privacy; ranging from my name to my posts. The first thing I keep in mind when creating an account is; do not use my real last name and birthday. For all social networking sites, I would never put my real birthday because I don’t feel that it is necessary. I understand how many people would think, “My friends won’t be able to find me if I don’t put my real last name,” but that shouldn’t be a problem. If they are someone you know and trust, you should be able to go to them in person and tell them what your account name is. Another thing that I keep in mind is to change my settings and privacy and make sure that not just anyone can view my information. On Facebook for example, I change my settings so that only friends of friends can search for me and only friends can see my information. I think that the biggest thing to keep in mind is to not accept friend requests from someone whom you’re not sure you know. They could end up being a cyber stalker who may end up taking your photos and personal information for the wrong reasons. There are cyber stalkers out there and that’s why we must protect our information from uninvited eyes and advertisers. If someone you don’t know gets access of your information and photos, you don’t know what they would do with it. They may end up using it for other purposes and you would end up being caught in a serious problem.
Social networking sites are fun and a great way for you and friends to connect but you must be aware of all the dangers out there and how to protect yourself from them.
