Facebook is one of the most popular social media platforms, with over 2 billion monthly active users. While Facebook allows us to connect with friends and family across distances, it also raises privacy concerns due to the vast amount of personal data users share on the platform. Fortunately, Facebook provides users with various privacy controls to limit sharing and help preserve their privacy. Making use of these controls allows users to customize their privacy settings based on their comfort levels.
What types of information do people share on Facebook?
Users share a wide variety of personal information on Facebook, intentionally and unintentionally. This includes:
- Basic profile information like name, birthday, location, education, work, relationship status, interests, etc.
- Photos and videos of themselves, family, friends, events, travel, etc.
- Status updates, check-ins, reviews, opinions, and other text posts
- Contact information and list of friends/connections
- Pages and content they like or follow
- Private messages with friends and groups
- Device and location data if sharing enabled
In addition to information explicitly provided by users themselves, Facebook also collects data about user activity on and off the platform to inform ads and recommendations. The extensive personal data available on Facebook makes it important for users to understand how to limit sharing.
How can you customize privacy settings on Facebook?
Facebook provides users with many options to control sharing and visibility. Here are some key ways to customize privacy:
Adjust default privacy setting for posts
The default setting shares posts with all friends. You can limit this to a smaller group like only close friends, specific friend lists, or only you. For the most private option, choose “Only me” for all posts by default.
Review privacy settings for individual posts
Whenever you create a post, use the audience selector menu to choose who can see it. Override the default setting for posts you want to share with a different audience.
Limit visibility of past posts
Use the “Limit Past Posts” tool to change the visibility of old posts to “Only me” or a limited audience. This can help take down any old posts you no longer want public.
Restrict profile visibility
Make your profile fully private and require your approval for new friend requests. This prevents random people from accessing your info.
Limit ad targeting
Opt out of allowing Facebook to use your personal data for ad targeting in Settings. This prevents ads from being informed by your activity across websites and apps.
Turn off location sharing
Disable location sharing services like Location History and Background Location to prevent Facebook from accessing your device location data.
Manage app permissions
Be selective when granting permissions to third-party apps and games. Avoid granting broad access to account info, friends list, photos, etc.
Secure account with two-factor authentication
Enable two-factor authentication, which requires an additional login code from your phone when accessing Facebook from a new device. This prevents unauthorized access.
Key Facebook privacy settings to review
Here are some key places within Facebook’s Settings to review and adjust sharing and visibility:
- Privacy Shortcuts – Control profile visibility, ad targeting, location sharing
- Privacy Checkup – Quick walkthrough to confirm key settings
- Who can see my stuff? – Review default audience for posts
- Limit Past Posts – Change visibility of old posts
- How people find and contact me – Manage profile visibility to public
- Ads – Manage use of data for ad targeting
- Apps and websites – Manage permissions granted to third party services
- Location – Manage access to location data
- Face Recognition – Control use of facial identification
- Two-Factor Authentication – Set up extra login security
Revisiting these settings periodically allows you to keep your sharing preferences up to date.
What aspects of your Facebook presence can still be visible?
Although Facebook provides many options to limit sharing, some elements of your presence may still be visible to others by default. Being aware of these can help manage privacy:
- Your name and profile photo remain visible even with a private profile
- Your list of friends and groups is also still visible
- Life events like engagements and new jobs may appear in others’ News Feeds
- Tags by friends in posts and photos remain visible
- Screen names for Facebook groups you’ve joined are visible
- Messenger/WhatsApp profile info remains visible to contacts
Checking these items and adjusting their visibility provides fuller privacy coverage.
How can you limit the information Facebook collects about you?
In addition to controlling what you visibly share on Facebook, you can also manage the behind-the-scenes personal data Facebook collects about you:
- Disable personalized/social ads to limit ad targeting data
- Turn off Location History and Background Location features
- Clear History to delete info about past clicks and searches
- Delete unnecessary contact/event data imported to profile
- Avoid granting unnecessary permissions to apps and websites
- Use privacy-focused web browser settings to limit tracking
- Frequently clear cookies and cached data from browser
Reducing Facebook’s collection of your behind-the-scenes activity data provides additional protection.
How can you check what Facebook data is available about you?
Facebook provides tools to download the data associated with your account. Reviewing this can show you what Facebook knows:
- Access your Facebook Information – Download data Facebook has about you
- Download your Information – Request copy of data from account
- Off-Facebook Activity – See data collected about activity on other sites/apps
- Access Your Information – Manage, export, delete data
Checking your downloaded data periodically lets you monitor what gets collected over time.
What steps can you take to maximize your privacy outside of Facebook?
In addition to Facebook’s own settings, broader digital safety habits also help:
- Use secure, unique passwords for all accounts
- Be selective in sharing personal info online
- Be wary of phishing attempts to steal login credentials
- Use antivirus/malware software and a firewall
- Connect only to secure wifi networks
- Delete unused online accounts and apps
- Enable browser extensions like Privacy Badger to block trackers
- Frequently clear cookies, cache, and browsing history
Following good digital hygiene and security practices enhances your overall privacy protection.
How can you balance privacy with useability on Facebook?
While maximizing privacy is important, you may also want to strike a balance with functionality:
- Use friend lists to segment sharing rather than a blanket “Only me”
- Limit past posts visibility instead of deleting all old content
- Review tags before deleting them to preserve photos
- Disable ads based on data from partners, but keep generalized ads
- Leave Messenger permissions active, but revoke unnecessary app perms
- Maintain location tagging for check-ins, but disable background collection
Customizing settings for your comfort level provides both privacy protection and ongoing utility.
Conclusion
Facebook offers many options for taking control of your privacy settings and limiting sharing of your personal data. Making use of these settings by customizing visibility, disabling tracking features, and restricting app permissions allows you to shape your preferred privacy levels. Additionally, exercising good data security and hygiene habits outside Facebook also helps safeguard your information. Finding the right balance for your needs through Facebook’s privacy controls enables you to get the benefits of social connection while preserving your privacy.