Facebook is hardly the safe or secure place many people treat it to be. There are a number of common mistakes Facebook users make that could potentially harm them in the long run. To help you clean up your online presence and make yourself generally happier, we’ve got some tips for you. Here are ten things you should stop doing on Facebook. No, seriously, stop doing these. Like, today.
Address
Take your address off of Facebook. If you’ve got it posted on your profile, take it down. If you’ve tagged yourself at your house before, delete that post. Someone trying to steal your identity needs your address, and there’s no reason you should be offering it up to them on a silver platter. Not to mention, its just a security risk. If you get into a heated debate with the wrong person and they decide they want to discuss it with fists, well… Let’s just said you might wish they hadn’t been able to use Google Maps to find your house.
Birthday
This one goes hand-in-hand with the address advice, as it pertains to identity theft primarily. If someone has your address and your date of birth they’re able to impersonate you in a lot of online settings. Not to mention, your actual friends know when your birthday is. People who don’t know weren’t going to be sending you any well wishes other than canned greetings. You’ve got nothing to lose but your money and credit score, so take that info down!
Drunk Pictures
Maybe you like to show the world that you party hard. Hey, that’s cool, no judgment! Everyone likes to get a little sideways sometimes! Here’s the thing, though. You need to be really careful posting pictures of you wasted every weekend, because potential employers see it. You might think your privacy settings are high enough, but they probably aren’t. Unless you’ve got your profile absolutely locked down, you need to delete these. For one thing, it’s a good idea in general to keep these things to yourself and your friends. For another, you never know when a potential employer could be scanning your profile. Clean it up!
Letting That One Friend Tag You in Inappropriate Things
This one falls into the same category. You know the friend: they’ve been tight with you since high school, you guys used to raise hell. Now they like to tag you in every offensive meme known to man. If there’s some lewd, bawdy or otherwise disrespectful image on Facebook, this friend has tagged you in it. Employers see this stuff, your family sees this stuff, it’s just a bad look. But you don’t want to stop being their friend on Facebook, they’re hilarious! Well, you just need to enable Timeline Review. It’s a simple step, but it’ll save you a ton of headaches. This way you’re in direct control over what you can be tagged in. It’s win-win!
Don’t Add Your Boss
Adding your boss is about the worst thing you can do for job security. Your boss is a person too, sure, and I bet you’d like to be their friend. But trust me, adding them on Facebook can only complicate a professional relationship. They don’t want to see your beach pictures anymore than you want to see the 3000th picture of their grandkids. Not to mention, if your political views don’t align and they take offense to something you say, you might be seeking new employment. It’s best to just avoid this awkward situation altogether.
Pictures from Vacation
To clarify this one: feel free to post all the beach pictures you want! However, make sure you wait until you get home. If you’re posting pictures at the airport, on the plane, at vacation, you’re giving potential burglars info. A lot of info. Like, how far you are from the country and your house. Make sure you just wait until you get home to post all those fun vacation pics. Besides, why are you on Facebook when you’re in the Caribbean? Go enjoy your vacation!
Getting into Fights
Stop doing this. We’re all guilty of it, but we all have got to stop. You’re not going to sway anyone’s opinion by getting into a virtual shouting match. Hopping in the comment section of some controversial post is just going to piss you off. You’re going to get riled up, stressed out and antsy over people you’ve never met. It’s just not good for your energy. Instead, just log out and walk away. Go read a book or take a walk!
Phone Number
Maybe Facebook told you it would help secure your profile. Maybe you thought it would be helpful for friends that lost their phones. In any event, you need to take your phone number off your profile. Scammers, telemarketers and pranksters are all able to see that number. You really don’t need those types of people calling you and bothering you! Not to mention, it’s also more ammunition for identity thieves. Play it safe out there!
Take Down Pictures of Exes
This one isn’t related to security, but to your mental health. Not to mention the future of your love life. You need to take those pictures of you and your ex down. Maybe you want to save them somewhere, and that’s fine. Everyone likes to reminisce sometimes. But you have got to take them out of the public space that is Facebook. Potential relationships could be complicated by images of you and your ex. What’s more, the “Your Memories” feature will dredge these up from time to time to give you a gut punch. Save yourself the trouble and take these down.
The Thing You Should Stop Doing on Facebook Immediately: Posting About the Gym
Stop posting about your weight loss progress and your sick gains. Stop taking selfies in the gym. Don’t take mirror pictures in the gym. Don’t take pictures in the gym’s locker room. Please, just stop. No one freaking cares. Start a fitness blog for your journey to skinny or whatever it is you’re doing. No one gives a single flying frack what you’re doing in the gym. Posting about it nonstop makes you come off as self-absorbed, condescending and fat-shaming and you need to quit it.
Alright that last one got away from me a bit, but you know what I mean. I get that you want to share your success. I know it must feel good to hit the gym and make yourself and strong. And it’s probably awesome to lose weight and look skinny! But really, stop getting all up in everyone’s face about it.
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