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Social Media

Social Media Tips

  • Don't input, store, or post personal or sensitive information on social media platforms.
  • Exercise good judgement! Once you post, that information has been seen by others and in some cases cannot be retracted.  Filter what is posted about you and by whom by requiring permission before posts become visible.
  • Be cautious with information sharing. Maintain your personal privacy settings on social media systems and do not allow any personally identifiable information to become visible to others.
  • Use a complex password and/or use multi-factor authentication when available. See our passwords page for more info.

Social Media Risks

GEOTAGGING
What is it?

Geotagging adds geographical identification data to photos, videos, websites and text messages through location-aware applications. This technology helps people file images and information based on a location from a mobile device or desktop computer.

What Is the Risk?

You should be cautious when enabling the geotagging features on mobile, location-based apps or certain camera devices because this feature could create personal security risks.  Be certain to disable geotagging features at sensitive locations or you may inadvertently tell people exactly where you are, where you work, or where you live with GPS accuracy.

Audience
What is it?

Audience is a general term that describes who is able to view and/or comment on your posts.

What Is the Risk?

Be aware that your audience can change at any time and may be able to view a post containing information about you.  You may have only intentionally shared something with your “friends”, but who they share it with could be out of your control.  “Friends of friends” is quite often a very large group of people - many of which you may not know or even associate with, so choose your audience wisely.

Identity
What is it?

Identity is a general term to describe information that pertains specifically to one individual.

What Is the Risk?

There are individuals who use social media as a research method seeking identity information, with possible nefarious intentions such as identity theft, fraud, impersonation, or intimidation.