A good privacy system in the net is of great significance. That is why Facebook pays to it so much attention and developed a multi-sided system of privacy aspects. You can choose out of over 170 options and get completely muddle herewith.
In addition to it the set of these options is not permanent; it changes from time to time and even if it looks like as you learned them inside out you may become confused after visiting this intricate Facebook Privacy Settings page next time.
The only way not to get lost in this tangle maze of privacy options is to focus on the most important ones. Below you will find 10 indispensible settings that will ensure security of your Facebook accounts.
1. Sharing on Facebook
Account > Privacy Settings > Sharing on Facebook
This setting helps you to establish a strict line of demarcation among the people who want to learn something about you visiting your page. Thanks to it you have an opportunity to choose the amount of information allowed to different of your acquaintance and strangers as well.
This Facebook Privacy Setting offers you to share content of your page with Everyone, Friends of Friends, or Friends Only. Besides, you can fine-tune this privacy aspect determining a certain type of content that will be visible only to persons you have chosen. For instance, you don’t want to show your holiday pictures to your colleagues who are denoted as Friends on your page; than you are able to close the view ability of your photos for those people.
Furthermore it includes “Preview my Profile” option that allows you to see your own profile on behalf of your guests.
2. Existing Photos
Account > Privacy Settings > Sharing on Facebook > Customize Settings > Edit album privacy for existing photos
Sometimes settings for sharing content on Facebook do not apply to all of your pictures. For example, old and Wall Photos can be still visible for people you do not want to include in the list of the viewers. But with this setting you can go through all of your photo albums and change the privacy setting for each separate one.
3. Checking In to Places
Account > Privacy Settings > Sharing on Facebook > Customize Settings > Friends can check me in to Places
This Facebook setting empowers your friends to check you in anywhere you are. But it should be noted that this openness to everyone is not safe. You can get into trouble letting everybody know where you are located. If you disconnect this feature you will probably get out of the rain.
4. Connecting on Facebook
Account > Privacy Settings > Connecting on Facebook
These settings for connecting with you involve possibility to share info about you: your photo, gender, age, education etc. They also determine the way people may contact with you, i.e. they can add you to their friends’ list, write messages to you or invite you to different groups etc.
While dealing with this setting you are in a position to choose between Everyone, Friends of Friends or Friends Only as your communication partners. You lay down the rules who are worth to be your addressant.
On the one hand it is convenient to close your profile and not allow any strangers and spammers to send you authorless letters but on the other hand you may turn into an elusive person who is almost impossible to be found over the net.
Here, you can change those settings to Friends Only, Friends of Friends, Everyone or — in some cases — customize them. For example, if you get pestered by too many anonymous messages, you might consider letting only your friends send them. Be careful: If you set everything to the strictest available privacy setting, people may have a harder time finding you on Facebook.
5. Apps You Use
Account > Privacy Settings > Apps and Websites > Apps You Use
Thanks to this Facebook setting you have a chance to overview all of the apps you already have and to remove those of them that you do not need any more (advice: if you can not remember what was the app for, you probably will never use it anymore).
6. Instant Personalization
Account > Privacy Settings > Apps and Websites > Instant Personalization
This setting lets the third-party websites personalize your experience. You may allow doing it or denying when asked.
When you accept the offer, the third-party websites will also have access to your personal data. If want to avoid it, just do not click on “Enable instant personalization on partner websites”.
7. Info Accessible to Your Friends
Account > Privacy Settings > Apps and Websites > Info accessible through your friends
This setting helps you to determine what exactly you want other people could know about you. Even if you set up privacy settings that allow only your closest friends look through your profile, you should not be completely sure that the third–party services won’t be able to have access to it, too. It is more likely if privacy settings of your friends are mild.
Thanks to this setting you can choose what of your data will be available to apps and websites in case your friends use them.
8. Public Search
Account > Privacy Settings > Apps and Websites > Public Search
Disable this feature, if you do not want people could see your profile while using search engine to find someone they need.
9. Friend Lists
Friends > Edit Friends > Create a List
Creating different lists of your friends will simplify the process of info separation you want to share. Examples of the groups are your relatives, colleagues, close friends etc.
At first it can be not easy to divide your friends into special groups, especially if you have a great deal of them. But in the future it will be less complicated to add new friends to established groups.
10. Enabling HTTPS
Account > Account Settings > Account Security > Secure Browsing (HTTPS)
The last setting that will be described here is connected with the security first of all. Facebook introduces HTTPS support that is widely known as a sign of a secure site where your info is hidden. This feature slows down the work of Facebook a little bit but it worth it.
Not everybody is allowed to use this option yet but Facebook promised to roll it out in the near future.
