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6 social media privacy mistakes you're making right now
How detailed is your favorite social media profile? You probably have pictures of yourself and your kids going back years. What about all the products and companies you’ve “liked?” No matter what your answer is, you’ve probably still shared more than you should with social media companies and their advertisers.
Those advertisers are constantly on the hunt for new ways to peddle their goods, and the data sold by platforms like Facebook help give them a clearer picture of who you are and what you’ll buy. Tap or click here to see how Facebook collects and shares your info.
Oversharing doesn’t just fuel pesky ads that follow you around the internet. Hackers, stalkers and trolls can easily use the content you’ve posted against you if you don’t take steps to keep it hidden. Check to see if you’re making these privacy mistakes.
1. You’re skipping the privacy and security basics
The most fundamental security feature of any website is a password, and despite how common they are, they’re still difficult to manage.
Some passwords are so easy to remember, hackers can guess them too. Or you may be in the (bad) habit of using the same password across multiple websites. If you’re doing this, stop right now and change your shared passwords immediately!
Tap or click here to see which passwords are considered the weakest on the web.
Why is this so dangerous? It all comes down to hackers and their willingness to experiment. If one gets a hold of your username and password on one site, you can bet they’ll try the same combination on other sites.
To protect yourself, you need stronger passwords — and several of them! Ideally, choose something unique for every platform you use.
To create a stronger password, use a complex combination of numbers, letters and uppercase characters in a way that makes sense to you. We recommend taking a song lyric (“Take my hand, off to never-never land.”) and converting it to something like T/Vho2nnL.
In this case, the password starts with an uppercase, the “M” becomes two slashes and a “V,” and the word “to” becomes the number 2.
And if the platforms you use offer two-factor authentication, enable it. This security feature sends an alert with an unlock code to you any time you try to log in, which means hackers won’t be able to crack your accounts without physical access to your smartphone.
VPN apps with 35 million downloads caught stealing data
We already know tech companies are gleefully collecting our data for profit. Between selling data to advertisers and sharing it with law enforcement, you never know what’s happening with your information. But one thing remains certain: Data is big business.
Report says Facebook isn't being truthful about your data and new 'privacy' tool
Reporting on Facebook is a double-edged sword. On one hand, the company makes so many newsworthy decisions and impacts so many lives that it’s impossible not to talk about them. But on the other, it’s tough to appear objective when Facebook does so many creepy things!
Now Facebook wants to pay you for your voice recordings - how much can you get?
In 2019, more than a few tech companies got caught abusing their users’ trust. The most notable stories involved the companies listening in on users and recording them without warning.
Thanks to the press, this practice was widely exposed and condemned by the public. Companies like Amazon, Apple and Google all admitted their mistakes and have since changed their policies. Tap or click here see how Amazon got caught.
Advertisers are following you home with targeted junk mail
If you find those targeted ads that are following you around online creepy, it’s time to take matters into your own hands. One way to do this is by changing settings on sites that are known for tracking.
Need help figuring out how to do this? No worries, we’ve got you covered. Tap or click here for 6 ways to stop advertisers from following you online.
Identity theft warning: 30 million credit card records for sale on the Dark Web
Security breaches are no fun for anyone except hackers. Data has become so valuable to advertisers and scammers alike that email addresses alone can fetch a hefty price on the shadier parts of the web.
It happens like clockwork: A flaw is discovered in a popular website or platform. Hackers undermine the system and infiltrate it. Then, the stolen data makes its way to a Dark Web marketplace, where anyone with bitcoin can have a go at your info. Tap or click here to see how 21 million stolen logins were sold this way.