Though social media websites and apps are the simplest and fastest way to connect with the outer world, calling it ‘safest’ is not at all true. With more than 93,000 cases of hacking, fraud, information stealing, online threats, and stalking alone in India, it became highly important to be aware of social media safety tips.
Although Government has come up with new IT rules to gain larger control over social media and make it a safe platform for everyone, it is also the user’s responsibility to use it with caution.
On World Social Media Day, we are here to guide you on how to stay safe on social media.
Social Media Safety Tips: What Users Should Know?
-
Strong Privacy Settings
Many users don’t care much about the privacy settings but ignoring these can easily put your account on the radar of hackers. Even though nothing is private on social media, one should keep their account private and select only users they know.
Also Read: Secure Messaging Apps 2021: Messaging Apps That Offer End-To-End Encryption
2. Spot The Fake Account
Whether it’s Facebook, Instagram, or Whatsapp, there are millions of active users on social media and not all are genuine. Some are only interested in stealing your details and will misuse them later.
This makes social media safety more important and by spotting the fake accounts you can prevent them from doing so.
• First of all, never accept anyone’s request that is unknown to you
• Visit their profile and look for personal details like location, name, and mutual contacts. If you don’t find any, block that account as it might be fake
• If you see no posts, random followers, and unrealistic profile photos; it might be fake
• In the case of WhatsApp, do check their contact number as some users use spoof numbers to make fake accounts
Also Read: 5 Countries Where Using Whatsapp Is Illegal, Here’s Why?
3. Never Open A Suspicious Link
This is one of the important social media safety tips to keep in mind. Hundreds of links are shared on Facebook, Instagram, and other social media apps claiming prizes, lucky draws, and more.
The rewards are so tempting that one cannot ignore but that’s the trick. Take a pause, get reassurance from the sender, check page source, credential access it asks for, and attachments to identify whether it’s fake or not.
Even though your friend or a known user has sent the link, Do Not Open it in hurry.
4. Different Passwords For Each Account
A common mistake most users commit is this. They keep the same password for all social media accounts just to save time. But having different passwords for different accounts can save you from hacker’s eyes.
In case one gets hacked others will be left unharmed or else all your details and valuable data will reach the hackers. Besides this, make a strong password that contains alphabets, letters, and a combination of symbols.
Never use your birth date or name as they are easier to crack.
Also Read: Insta Alert! Adult Users Cannot DM Teens Under Instagram’s New Policy
5. Think Twice Before Sharing
The social media servers keep track of everything you post online. So be careful while sharing any personal photos, videos, or post that reveals your location because someone else might be keeping an eye over you.
Also Read: Google Introduces New Feature Called People Cards – What To Know
Take note of all these social media safety tips because ‘Your Safety Is In Your Hand”.