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Health & Fitness

Better Control Your Facebook Privacy

Facebook had their IPO last week. They also have been in the news because of privacy concerns. Here is how to better manage your privacy on Facebook.

You probably have heard about Facebook sharing too much of your information.

Hopefully, you also are concerned about what Facebook does with your information. Ever wonder how they suggest "friends" to you or how the ads you see appear to be aligned with your interests?

While Facebook does not have the best track record regarding privacy, there are a few things you can do that can improve your privacy on Facebook.

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Given Facebook's privacy policy, which seems to constantly be changing, you'll want to set up your preferences where you have as much control as possible. One in 10 Facebook users in the US ignore Facebook privacy settings. That is 13 million people.

More than 60 percent of apps users do not use privacy controls. If you have not already done so, the first thing you need to do if you are allowing others to see your date of birth is to make sure no one can see your birth year. By clicking on "Update Info" go to "Basic Info." Under your birthday, make sure that the option under your birthdate does not enable the year to be shown.

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Doing this makes it more difficult to steal your identity. It usually is also a good idea to set your telephone number to be seen by "Only Me." There also is probably no need to put your address on Facebook as well.

Regarding the other information about you, you should determine what you are comfortable sharing and with whom. I worked with a client recently who did not want to put too much information about herself and then decided to put and share her hometown in the hope of finding some old friends. Most of my information and posts I share with friends only. That is my personal comfort zone. 

In "Privacy Settings," you'll likely want to set your default privacy to friends. Under "Timeline and Tagging," you'll want the ability to review posts friends tag you in before they appear on your timeline. Turn this option "On."

In "Privacy Settings" under "Apps You Use," you can edit the settings for your apps. In the individual apps, you'll likely want to limit who can see the posts the app makes for you to "Only Me."

There are more ways to increase your Facebook privacy. These are just some of them. As Facebook's settings are subject to change, you should review yours every so often. Regardless of your privacy settings, you always want to be careful of what you post on Facebook. If you have specific questions regarding your Facebook account, I am available at (917) 572-3468.

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