Use a strong password
Your password has to be long and complex enough so that it cannot be guessed or cracked easily.
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Have you ever wondered what information people can find out about you from social media or what would happen if someone got their hands on your social media accounts? Social media has become a big part of our everyday lives, making it easy to communicate with others and share bits of our life with pictures and posts. It is important to remember that there are also bad actors on social media who are up to no good. This article focuses on using social media safely and securely and explains the inherent risks of social media.
Social media account security
Use a unique password for each social media service
Use a separate password for all services you use. This prevents hackers from accessing other services you use with the same password in the event of an account breach.
Enable two-factor authentication
Two-factor authentication is another safeguard to avoid an account breach. When using this option, just guessing or otherwise learning your password is not enough to access your account because login requires another method of identification as well.
Track login attempts
Social media services may notify you of suspicious login attempts. If you do not have the above things in order, you should get them sorted when you get a notification.
Scammers may also phish your username and password with login notifications, so always check the sender of a message before doing anything else.
Be careful which network you use when logging in
Not all Wi-Fi connections are necessarily secure, so you should avoid logging in to services when using free public Wi-Fi, for example.
Privacy of social media accounts
It is very important to consider the audience when sharing your information or posts on social media. You can use account privacy settings to control whether your account is private and what kinds of accounts can see your details and posts. You can also specify whether external accounts can send you messages. The more open your account is, the more information there is for scammers and criminals to use for various types of fraud or social manipulation.
Profile visibility
Make sure your profile is only visible to friends or followers you have approved. Many social media platforms offer an option to change the publicity of your profile.
Contact information
Restrict the visibility of personal information, like your phone number and email address, if you do not want them to be visible to outsiders. If your contact details are visible, it can increase the number of scams, phishing and spam messages.
Privacy of posts
Adjust your settings to only allow approved friends or followers to see your posts. You can also create custom groups for targeting posts. Also, do not share posts or photos about other people without their permission.
Sharing your location
Disable location sharing or only use it when necessary. Make sure that pictures and updates do not inadvertently contain location information.
Managing profile details
Keep your personal information, like your birthday, home address, and workplace, private or visible to friends only.
Block suspicious or unwanted accounts
If you receive follow, friend, or message requests from suspicious or unfamiliar accounts, you can choose to block those accounts. In cases where it is clear that an account is attempting to scam you or is spreading content that is not appropriate for the platform, you should report the account to the platform administrator.
What goes online stays online
Remember that everything you put on the internet stays there forever. That is why you should avoid sharing sensitive information in any form on social media accounts in all situations. Remember that if your account is hacked, the hacker will have access to your private messages as well.
Delete unused accounts
You should delete accounts that you no longer use. Old and unused accounts may not be protected according to current recommendations. For example, are there old social media platforms where you have created an account or accounts that you no longer use? If you no longer have any use for these accounts, you should not keep them active.
You can encounter many kinds of scams on social media platforms. Below is a list of factors that may help you identify a scam. What to look out for:
Scams on social media
Offer that is too good to be true
If an offer is something incredibly cheap, a failsafe investment or an incredible prize from a competition that you did not enter, it is almost certainly a scam.
Urgent requests
Scammers create a sense of urgency to make you act without thinking twice or checking whether a request is legitimate. For example, an urgent bill or a stolen or broken phone is one common way to create a sense of urgency.
Spelling and grammar errors
Messages or posts that contain many errors can be a sign of fraud. Still, you should keep in mind that even if a message or post has no errors, it does not mean that it is genuine.
Requesting personal data or payment
Reputable companies do not ask for passwords or banking details via social media. They will also not ask you to pay with unusual methods, such as gift cards or cryptocurrencies.
Unknown senders or strange accounts
Be careful with messages from accounts that you don’t recognize. If a message is from someone you know, check that it is their real account. Also watch out for messages from hacked accounts.
HOW TO GET HELP?
If your social media account gets hacked, contact the service provider. Also, never pay ransom to criminals if they demand payment in exchange for getting your account back. Below, you can find links to advice on hacked accounts for the most commonly used social media platforms.
Also remember to file a police report if your account is hacked.
READ OUR GUIDELINES
LET US KNOW ABOUT A DATA BREACH!
You can report data breaches, such as phishing or DNS attacks, and attempted breaches to Traficom’s National Cyber Security Centre. The form will guide you through and give you advice on the most common information security incidents.