Nothing on the internet is private

I hadn't intended on writing a second blog post this month, but the recent storm that has hit editing circles has highlighted what I call a hidden trap of the internet. And this one is one that would seem as obvious as the nose on my face, yet there are fools who just don't understand it.

Nothing on the internet is private. Not emails. Not personal messages. Not even chat room conversations.

If a computer or electronic device is involved somewhere within the process of passing information from one person to another, then there is a very real possibility that the information could be leaked and made public.

On November 12, 2021, Victoria Strauss released a blog post on the Writer Beware blog about an editor and their shady practices. Within the editors' circles, there is concern about this particular editor's practices and how it might reflect on editors as a whole, but most of the conversation I've seen centers around the shocking nature of the editor's emails and communications.

I don't want to get into the disconnect between client expectations and services provided by this editor, because that's not the hidden trap that I want to highlight. I want to focus entirely on the fact that the whole world now knows exactly how this editor communicates. And the reason we now know this is because a screen capture of email communications was shared as part of the Writer Beware blog post.

And that is the hidden trap.

Recommended Facebook Privacy Settings for Profiles (October 2020)

Facebook is one of those sites that is constantly updating their system. This IS a good thing, because they recognize that their system is not perfect.

I will be the first to admit that some changes they have brought in are things that really are odd and make things worse, not better, but with every change comes another instance when Facebook users should take the time to go through the settings to see what has been added and what has disappeared.

Facebook introduced a new interface for the web-based system a few months ago, and as of last month, the option to use the old interface disappeared. And last week, Facebook rolled out a new update to their mobile apps too. So, if you haven't already reviewed your privacy and security settings on the site, NOW is the time to do it.

Is your profile a turnoff?

Publishing has always been a business, and writers are expected to build brands, which consists not only of the books they write, but also of their social media and online presence. Our non-writing activities have always been a part of this whole marketing thing, and how we handle that message is just part of the game. However, the internet has added a "now" component to the marketing equation that wasn't there before, and disaster is waiting to happen.

Anyone who is a regular reader of this blog (and my personal blog) will know that I'm a big fan of protecting oneself on the internet, protecting one's physical and cyber security, as well as one's reputation. But there could be aspects with what you are doing that could be a massive turnoff... and you don't even know it.

I'm talking about the overall message behind what it is that you're posting. I'm talking about your profile as a whole: the bio, the photos, and the individual messages. I'm talking about the public face that you present to the world.

And it all boils down to two things: politics and religion. They are both incredibly sensitive topics, but they also have their fingers wrapped around almost everything that we do.

Let me explain further.

Facebook: Is it time to panic about security?

Facebook has hit the news once again with yet another security breach. This time, the breach was a flaw in the View as... feature built into the platform to give users the ability to see their profiles and pages as another user would see them. It had to do with some combination of settings between this feature and the uploading of videos that gave some hacker access to over 50 million people's data.

News of the breach is EVERYWHERE! There is even a public statement about it on the Facebook site.

To be honest, I'm not surprised this has happened. As much as people like to pretend otherwise, the internet and social media are still new technology. Yes, sites like Facebook have been around for a while, going public in 2004. However, what Facebook looked like in 2004 is NOTHING compared to what it looks like today. Social media as a whole is dramatically different. Same too with the internet.

More and more people are joining the world of the internet. For much of the Western Society, it has become a massive part of our lives. My children are now required to sit certain school exams or submit assignments online. This is the world we now live in.

With the changes in the world, we were bound to face issues surrounding privacy and security. The question is: is it time to panic?

In a one-word answer: No. In a longer answer: No, but it is time to examine our practices and take steps to protect ourselves.

Here is a list of steps you should take to protect yourself on the internet, not just Facebook.

The Must-Have Website

When I first started down the road towards publication myself, I did an extensive amount of research trying to understand exactly what I needed to do to make it happen. There was this one thing that kept cropping up, time and time again. Platform. Website. Website. Platform.

When I saw this constant theme of website for writers, I wanted to run screaming. There was no way I wanted to stress myself with having to do all the coding associated with having a website. And the cost... I could barely afford my internet bill. But if I wanted to make a name for myself as a writer, I was going to have to suck it up and just do it.

I was pleasantly surprised at how simple — and cheap — it all was.

I created the first iteration of my author website, with all the bells and whistles, within 30 minutes. I kid you not. And all it cost me was time. That website was FREE.

Don’t blame Facebook for sharing data that you already share.

Facebook and Zuckerberg have found the news again, but this time it's about sharing data with the Chinese. This is not exactly a surprise, especially after what was revealed earlier this year. Lawmakers and government officials have the right to be up in arms about this, because sharing of data was independent of any privacy settings that you might have had on your accounts. However, do we really have the right to complain about Facebook sharing data that we already share publicly?

Don't get me wrong, I think this breach of privacy and security is a serious issue. Earlier this year, I posted about how to access some of the hidden Facebook features that were associated with synced contact details from smartphones. However, there is another whole range of security and privacy settings that most people either can't be bothered with or don't know about. Yet, many are complaining about data being shared when they themselves are the ones publicly sharing the data.

Facebook Settings that Your Phone Forgot to Tell You About

Note to reader: This blog post was originally written in 2018. Some settings have moved and changed names. I have done what I can to update this post with the interfaces that were present in November 2022, but some things might not be entirely accurate anymore.

Facebook seems to be on a security breach, hole plug mode, with new updates and new features that are constantly coming online. (And some settings are disappearing.) I am updating this post as I discover more settings. If you desire, you can just skip to the updates and the new settings that I've found.

Unless you have been hiding in a hole somewhere, and NOT on Facebook, then you will know about the blowup that is going on about how the Facebook app seems to be accessing information from outside its app — in particular contact details. It's not surprising that people are all up in arms over this. This sort of information should be private, and Facebook should only be accessing information that we've given them permission to access.

Cue the evil doer music, because... Guess what... You did give permission for Facebook to access that information when you installed the Facebook or Facebook Messenger app on your phone. And permission wasn't given by installing the app. Permission was given by a hidden setting that syncs your contact details on your phone with Facebook. Here's the kicker... The setting is set to ON by default — sort-of.

There is actually a dialog that asks if you want to sync your contacts, but the only options it gives is Learn More and OK. How is the average user supposed to know that buried at the bottom of the Learn More option is a tiny Not Now link? So most people hit OK, and presto... You just gave Facebook permission to access your contacts list.

But not all hope is lost. Here's how you can change it, and remove your contracts list from Facebook, without uninstalling the apps — not that uninstalling the apps would remove your contacts list from Facebook anyway.

Words Can Cut Like Knives

As writers, we carefully craft our sentences to use the perfect word to say what is it that we want to say, creating the exact image in a reader’s mind. There are times when writers have been known to spend days to find those perfect words. Yet, there is one aspect of our writing lives where many writers don’t take the same care with words as they do their stories.

I’m talking about the posts that writers put on Facebook, Twitter and other social media. The rush to get the post out there can sometimes land us in situations where the words cut like knifes.