Privacy Check
For this week's assignment, I chose the Privacy Check option. Why? When I read the choices, it dawned on me that is has been some time since I reviewed privacy settings on the social media platforms I use and stopped using.
FACEBOOK
Following the suggestions listed in "How to Manage Your Social Media Privacy Settings", I went step by step to review my current privacy settings (2019). Under Security Log In, I do not have a two-factor authorization. I did not change this setting because I want to think about it first. I only access social media accounts on my own devices and I do not have FB set up on my phone. I did notice my phone number was listed but locked so that only I can view it. Since I do not use my phone for FB, I removed my phone number.
The next set of images if the path where to find information that is saved about its Users.
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| Figure 1. Click Access Your Information. |
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| Figure 2. Explanation of purpose. |
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| Figure 3. View of some of the choices available. |
Figure 3 gives you a menu of items to click and review. the Profile Information choice that is circled contains the information the User chooses to display on the FB home page. It provides a nice view of what others see when they visit your page. If you do not change the options, the FB default is used, so it is a good item to check to make sure that what is actually being displayed is what the User wants, not what FB wants.
I was most curious to review my privacy settings because leaving a trail of digital footprints and making my page available to everyone is something I do not want. The Privacy area has two categories, Your Activity and How People Find and Contact You. In both areas, the settings are currently Friends. The one setting I wanted to change but cannot is Who can look you up using the phone number you provided. Currently, the setting is Friends, but I wanted Only Me as the setting. That is not an option within this setting, so I am glad I removed my phone number. The last setting is if I want other search engines outside of FB to link to my profile. ummmmm, NO. I really do not need or want other search engines collecting data about me. This setting was set for No, thus I did not need to change this one.
Another area I looked at within settings was Location. I was relieved to find that I have the Location History set to off. I see no reason why FB needs to know where I am, especially since I only access FB from home. Having a website constantly knowing my location is something I find creepy and invasive.
Blocking is next. Within this area, I did find that I have blocked a couple of people and companies over the years for various reasons. Do I remember why I blocked each one? Yes! There are two people and two companies and there is no way I would ever unblock them.
The Face Recognition category is a new one to me. I have no idea when that category started, but I was happy to see that it was not enabled. According to the blurb on FB, the purpose of enabling this feature is so FB can create better experiences for me. Thanks, but no thanks, I create my own experiences. But wait! Before I rush to judgment, I decided to click the Learn More link because I wanted to make sure I understood this tool. After further investigation, enabling face recognition is to provide me with security. 1. Protects the User from their profile photo being used by others as their profile photo. 2. Helps Users with visual impairments by telling them who is in the photo. 3. Informs the User when you appear in a photo/video, such as a group photo, that the User was not tagged in. There are more reasons listed by FB HERE. I think I need to investigate other sources to make an informed decision if I should have face recognition enabled, but for now, the setting is disabled.
Now What?
The time it took to go review and update my privacy settings on FB was well worth the time. My plan is to review the other social media platforms I use to make sure my digital footprints are secure and minimized.
Now What?
The time it took to go review and update my privacy settings on FB was well worth the time. My plan is to review the other social media platforms I use to make sure my digital footprints are secure and minimized.
Works Cited
Facebook Privacy Basics. (n.d.). Retrieved February 4, 2019, from https://www.facebook.com/about/basics/manage-your-privacy/face-recognition#9
How to Manage Your Social Media Privacy Settings. (n.d.). Retrieved February 4, 2019, from https://identity.utexas.edu/everyone/how-to-manage-your-social-media-privacy-settings
No Facebook on your phone?! You are so disciplined! This is probably the one place I check it consistently. Thanks for the screenshots, they are very helpful. Let us know what you end up deciding to do about the facial recognition!
ReplyDeleteSince you and Amanda had similar comments, I typed one comment as a reply as a new comment. Thank you for your feedback.
DeleteI completely agree with Professor Zumpano, how do you not use Facebook on your phone?!?! Do you have any social media apps on your phone? Your post made me think about how I should review these settings with my parents. They use Facebook and always ask for help to set something up or upload a photo, I would like to make sure their privacy settings are set to their liking!
ReplyDeleteSince you and Nicole had similar comments, I typed one comment as a reply as a new comment. Thank you for your feedback.
DeleteLOL Nicole and Amanda! The only social media app I have on my phone is Instagram, but that is because I use that for work. I will post live feed, or use Instagram to post photos and that allowed me to connect with FB and Twitter. My last phone has limited storage, so I was used not having popuplar apps on my phone. I bought a new phone last month with more storage, but I did not add social media apps. My decsion not to add specific apps was a conscious one. My laptop and iPad are my go to devices and I seem to be glued to my laptop, once I am home. I really didn't need to be tied to my phone too. My phone is used for calling, texting, email, checking weather, Cubs tickets, coffee, coffee, and coffee.
ReplyDeleteI have too my friends and family that behave like Pavlov's dog with their phones. Ding, check text. Honk, check email, Buzz, check social media. Do not get me wrong, if that is how someone uses their phone, more power to him/her. I just do not want to be tied to my phone, so at least for now, I will refrain from adding social media apps to my phone.
Amanda, I am glad I did a review of my settings, even though I did not really change much. Doing so made me take a look at the choices I made and why I made them.
Wow! I don't think I've EVER checked my privacy settings! Your post was eye opening, to say the least. And, like the other comments, I can't believe you don't have Facebook on your phone! A couple of weeks ago I had to purchase a new phone and the Face Recognition is weird, but I went with it. I'm going to go in and check the settings you've listed in your post. Thanks for an informative blog post!
ReplyDeleteSarah
Thank you Sarah for your input about the face recognition feature, I still have to look into that. Maybe one day I will add FB to my phone, but for now I stick to my coffee apps. I am tempted to put Pinterest back on my phone since I am constantly searching for recipes, gardening ideas, and educational resources.
DeleteHi Karen, I think that every time I'm job hunting I double check my privacy settings to see if there's anything else I can do to tighten things up. My students always find a way to cyber stalk me though. I actually kind of like the face recognition feature Facebook has. It alerts me when someone posts a picture of me, even when I'm not tagged. Another added measure that I do is view my profile's public view, just so that I can see what others my be seeing if they manage to find my page.
ReplyDeleteSharon,
DeleteGood point about the face recognition, I am beginning to see the value in the feature. Great idea about viewing your profile as a public view! I will be doing that this weekend.
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ReplyDeleteYour post made me want to check my privacy settings on Facebook as well. I haven't in a while either. I feel like Facebook changes things often so it's important to check the settings to make sure nothing new is open that reduces privacy. My Location History is also set to off. I don't want people to know where I am when I'm posting something...this could cause problems if I'm supposed to be somewhere that I'm not! I think the Face Recognition is amazing..sometimes I think pictures are blurry, but yet, this feature seems to still work at identifying people. I have mine set to on. I have not received any notifications that my picture is posted on anyone's profile, but I think it's good to have if this happens. I'd like to know if my image was in the background of someone's picture, especially if I'm not tagged in the photo.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that it's amazing that you don't have Facebook on your phone. My phone is where I primarily check Facebook. It's one of the main reasons why I'm slow with getting some work done because I'm checking that. Maybe I should consider taking it off my phone....I think it may be too difficult to do at this point since I'm too used to it now though!
Laura,
DeleteI guess I am in the minority since I seem to be the only one who does not have FB on my phone. :D
Knowing how often I would be checking FB on my phone, I think it best for me, for at least now, to not add that to my phone. I'm already distracted or look for breaks while on the computer, having my phone next to me beeping with notifications is just something I do not want to deal with.
My previous phone did not have a lot of storage so I just became used to not having FB on it. I did have Messenger, but it drained my battery, so I deleted that app.
Your input and others about face reconition has been helpful, so I think I will enable that feature. The comments you made about FB changing features so often, I think I need to check my privacy settings on a regular basis because FB's defaults are not always what I want.
Thank you for your feedback Laura.