Most think they are putting their best and safest practices to use while online. Are you?... Are you sure?
Let's review...just in case... a few social media safety best practices.
The latest Consumer Reports report: "Annual State of the Net" conducted by National Research Center, found that American's lost $4.5 billion to cyber crime during the past two years.
There is no fool-prof way to avoid and protect yourself from cyber crimes, but there are plenty of simple steps you can take to prevent yourself from becoming a victim.
Your Password:
You've heard this over and over... and over again. You should not use words that can be found in the dictionary and use a mix of letters and numbers.
Your Full Birth Date:
Never list month, date, and year. Only month and day or nothing at all.
Other Private Info:
Phone number, email, address, work site are ammunition. They're all traceable back to you and often lead to even more personal information.
Setting/Adjusting Privacy Controls:
They're there for a reason. Use them. You have more control than you realize.
Posting A Child's Name:
Yes, we all love sharing our moments with our loved ones. But when it comes to your children, you should not use their name or tag them in photos. This give those with malicious intentions more information than they need.
Vacation/Travel:
Would you hang a sign on your front door that you're in Mexico for a week? Then why are you notifying 200, 300, 400+ people on Facebook, Twitter, etc? There is nothing wrong about being excited about an upcoming trip, but don't specify dates or how long you'll be gone!
Juvenile Unsupervised Use:
If your child is on a social media site and you are not, then they should not be on the site either. Most of the sites do have age requirements for usage but we all know how easy it is to lie online. Your child should follow the same guidelines you're following for online safety. If someone got to your private information online, they can get to your child's information as well.
Photos:
My general rule of thumb is to ask yourself two basic questions: 1. would I be fired from my job if administration saw this picture and 2. would I want this image on the news?
They are watching! It is common practice to search social networking sites for potential hires, volunteer, college applicants, grantees, etc.
The Good Stuff
It's not all bad when it comes to online/social media safety. Many police and fire & rescue departments have embraced social media. They've used these tools to connect and communicate with the community and to also capture criminals.
As Smokey says:
"Only you can prevent forest fires"
Only you can help prevent cyber crimes.
Resources:
Facebook Page for Stay Safe Online.org
Facebook Privacy Settings
Facebook Safety Center
Monyelle is a social media marketing consultant at Monyelle's Marketing http://TheOnlineSocialMediaSummit.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment