To better protect your privacy on Facebook, Instagram, Google, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Snapchat, consider configuring and setting up the following essential privacy settings:
Facebook:
- Limit who can see your future and past posts: Adjust the audience of your posts by going to Settings > Privacy > “Who can see your future posts?” and “Limit the audience for posts you’ve shared.”
- Restrict who can find you using your email or phone number: Go to Settings > Privacy > “Who can look you up using the email address or phone number you provided?”
- Control who can send you friend requests: Go to Settings > Privacy > “Who can send you friend requests?”
- Review and remove any third-party apps with access to your Facebook account: Go to Settings > Apps and Websites > Active Apps and Websites.
Instagram:
- Make your account private: Go to your profile > tap on the three horizontal lines in the top-right corner > Settings > Privacy > switch on the “Private Account” option.
- Limit who can see your stories: Go to Settings > Privacy > Story > “Hide Story From” and select specific people.
- Control who can comment on your posts: Go to Settings > Privacy > Comments > “Allow Comments From” and select your preferred audience.
- Restrict and manage interactions with specific users: Go to a user’s profile > tap on the three horizontal lines in the top-right corner > Restrict.
Google:
- Review and control the information Google saves about you: Visit https://myactivity.google.com and review your saved activity. You can delete activities or turn off specific data collection.
- Adjust your ad preferences: Visit https://adssettings.google.com to manage your ad settings, opt-out of ad personalization, and review your interests.
- Manage your Google app permissions: Visit https://myaccount.google.com/permissions to review and revoke access to third-party apps connected to your Google account.
- Check and update your privacy settings: Visit https://myaccount.google.com/privacycheckup to conduct a Privacy Checkup and customize your privacy preferences.
Twitter:
- Protect your tweets: Go to Settings and privacy > Privacy and safety > Toggle on “Protect your Tweets.”
- Control who can tag you in photos: Go to Settings and privacy > Privacy and safety > Photo tagging > Choose “Only people you follow” or “Off.”
- Adjust your Direct Messages settings: Go to Settings and privacy > Privacy and safety > Direct Messages > Toggle on/off “Receive messages from anyone” as per your preference.
- Review and manage connected apps: Go to Settings and privacy > Account > Apps and sessions > Revoke access for any unwanted apps.
LinkedIn:
- Control who can see your connections: Go to Settings & Privacy > Visibility > “Who can see your connections” and select your preference.
- Manage your public profile visibility: Go to Settings & Privacy > Visibility > “Edit your public profile” and choose the sections you want to display or hide.
- Adjust your activity broadcast settings: Go to Settings & Privacy > Visibility > “Share job changes, education changes, and work anniversaries from profile” and toggle it off if desired.
Snapchat:
- Control who can send you snaps: Go to Settings > Who Can… > “Contact Me” and select “My Friends” or “Everyone.”
- Restrict who can view your story: Go to Settings > Who Can… > “View My Story” and select “My Friends,” “Everyone,” or “Custom” to choose specific friends.
- Manage who can see your location on Snap Map: Go to Settings > Who Can… > “See My Location” and select “My Friends,” “Select Friends,” or “Ghost Mode” (to hide your location).
- Control notifications: Go to Settings > Who Can… > “Send Me Notifications
- Manage your last seen status: Go to Settings > Account > Privacy > Last Seen, and select “Everyone,” “My Contacts,” or “Nobody” based on your preference.
- Control who can see your profile photo: Go to Settings > Account > Privacy > Profile Photo, and choose “Everyone,” “My Contacts,” or “Nobody.”
- Adjust who can view your “About” information: Go to Settings > Account > Privacy > About, and select “Everyone,” “My Contacts,” or “Nobody.”
- Manage your status privacy: Go to Settings > Account > Privacy > Status, and choose “My Contacts,” “My Contacts Except…,” or “Only Share With…” to control who can see your status updates.
- Control who can add you to groups: Go to Settings > Account > Privacy > Groups, and select “Everyone,” “My Contacts,” or “My Contacts Except…” to restrict who can add you to group chats.
- Enable two-step verification: Go to Settings > Account > Two-Step Verification, and follow the prompts to add an extra layer of security to your account.