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.

Gaining followers the right way

So, you've joined up to a new social media site. It's only natural that you want to gain followers. Let's face it, you likely joined that social media site so you can forge meaningful connections that will help you in the future to actual sell stuff.

Or did you?

This is where things get a little muddled, because there are many people who delude themselves about the truth of what they're doing—writers in particular.

Social media, regardless of the platform you are talking about, is all about building connections. It's about building those networks. The larger that network is, the better off you will be when it actually comes time to sell a book or whatever.

I'm not saying that you're going to blast "Buy my book" ads to your networks, because that is the LAST thing you should do. But, with fostered connections, when you do mention that you have a book coming out, those networks will help you to spread the word.

It might take years to build those valuable connections, but there is a right way and a wrong way to go about it.

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.

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.

Save Me From Spam Hell

So, there is this website that is offering something free and you want it. Let's face it, free things are always good — well, most of the time they're good. However, the moment you sign up for that free thing, handing over your email, you know you're going to be giving the owners of that email list permission to send you spam. You don't want that. So, what is a girl to do?

Easy. Use an email specifically intended for nothing but spam.

But for writers, it's not a simple matter of spam versus general communications. You also have administration details, submissions and blog subscriptions. The email inbox of a writer can quickly become a nightmare. Important emails can become buried without you even realizing it.

Do you want to fight the email crazies? Well, here's how.

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.

The Dangers of Photos and GPS on Social Media

Put your hand up if you have found yourself becoming a shutter-bug. Be honest.

With the latest phones, many of us now have a high-resolution camera sitting in our back pockets (or in my case, the outside pocket of my purse). So, it’s not surprising that people have become trigger happy with their phone cameras. Add in the fact that smartphones have easy access to the internet, and those photos are now being showcased for the world to see.

Before you hit the share button, you might want to take a good look at that photo.Read More→

What is a Platform?

The whole concept of building a following can be overwhelming at times, and there really isn’t much solid advice out there. However, a writer’s platform is not the complicated concept that many turn it into.

A writer’s platform is NOT marketing, promotion, or publicity. It’s not just a website or social media — for that matter, it’s not just your books. A writer’s platform is everything that you do to connect with readers.

It’s your local writers’ group that you attend once a month, or more frequently, as the case may be. It’s those conferences and book festivals that you save your pennies for so you can afford the registration. It’s your participation in special events that have nothing to do with writing and your books.

Yes, a writer’s platform includes your books, website, and social medial, and yes, this online component in today’s market is important, but it’s not everything.