How To Stay Safe On Facebook & Other Social Networking Sites!

I know people have different reasons for joining Twitter, FaceBook, Instagr.am, Blip.fm, Flickr, Foursquare, etc… My main reason for joining social networking sites is the excitement of sharing ideas, thoughts, photos and fun! No matter what our reasons are for joining, we should also be cautious of our safety, especially since there are some people out there with bad intentions who might also be using the same social networking sites. People need to be safe, whether offline or online.

There are some people who share too much information. They forget that we still need to be careful with what information we share, especially personal information that only us and our closest friends should know. Here are some tips that I hope will be useful for staying safe on FaceBook and other social networking sites that you belong to.

1. Foursquare – This also applies to other location based sites for that matter, like Gowalla and FaceBook Places. If you want to share with people where you are, that is fine, but if you want to check into your house, make sure you do not add the complete address (omit the number of your apartment or street address). I do not check into where I live at all. I only check into the places that a lot of other people frequent like restaurants, malls, movie theaters, etc…

2. FaceBook – Sharing photos is great. Just make sure that you do not include photos that will show others the layout of your house. And, if at all possible, never share detailed info about your vacation plans, and the dates when you won’t be home. It is better to share those vacation pictures after you have gotten back home, especially if you know that no one is there at your house minding the place while you are away. It is also good not to share your personal YM and email address where everyone can see and add you.

3. Twitter – Similar to FaceBook, it is good to practice some discretion when sharing your personal information.

I found a video that can illustrate further how you can stay safe online, especially on Facebook, which is where the majority of people share more personal information on a daily basis. It is always good to practice safety. I hope these tips are helpful, and if you have other suggestions, please feel free to share them here.

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How To Stay Safe On Facebook

Image Credit: [Bill Oxford / Shutterstock]