Facebook’s default privacy settings allow much of your information to be seen by the public. This includes your profile picture, cover photo, gender, networks, username, and more. Many people are uncomfortable with having so much personal information viewable to anyone on the internet. Fortunately, Facebook does provide a variety of privacy settings and tools to limit what the public can see on your profile. Here are some tips on how to stop the public from seeing everything on Facebook:
Adjust Privacy Settings
The first step is to visit your privacy settings page by clicking on the drop-down arrow in the top right corner and selecting “Settings & Privacy” then “Settings” and going to the “Privacy” tab. Under the “Privacy” heading is “Who can see your future posts?” Click “Edit” and change the setting from “Public” to “Friends” or a more restrictive group. This will make all future posts visible only to people you’ve connected with on Facebook.
You can also limit the audience for past posts under the “Limit Past Posts” section on this page. Click “Limit Old Posts” and change the setting from “Public” to “Friends” or another group. This will restrict visibility of posts you’ve already shared on your timeline.
Review All Your Information
Go through each section under “Privacy Shortcuts” on the left menu and click “Edit” or “View As” to see what information is visible to the public. For things you want to hide like your email, birthday, relationships, etc. change the audience to “Only Me” or “Friends”.
Restrict Searchability
Even if your profile and posts are hidden, people can still find you through search engines like Google. To prevent this:
- Go to “Settings & Privacy” then click “Settings”.
- Go to “Privacy” then “How people can find and contact you”.
- Disable “Do you want search engines outside of Facebook to link to your profile?”
This will remove your profile from appearing in public search engine results.
Review Tags
Check any photos or posts you’ve been tagged in by clicking on “Photos” or “Posts” under your profile name. For anything you don’t want public, remove the tag of yourself.
You can also limit who can see posts you’re tagged in under “Timeline and Tagging” settings.
Create Friend Lists
Sort friends into lists like “Close Friends”, “Family”, “Co-Workers” etc. When sharing posts, you can choose to show them to only certain friend lists rather than all friends. This lets you share certain info only with your closest friends.
To do this:
- Go to your profile and click “Friends” on the left menu.
- Click the dropdown next to “All Friends” and select “Create List”.
- Give the list a name like “Close Friends” and add the friends you want.
Now when posting, you can choose “Close Friends” to limit the audience.
Review Apps and Websites
Facebook apps and websites you’ve logged into with Facebook could have access to your data. To check which ones can see your info:
- Go to “Settings” then click “Apps and Websites” on the left.
- Remove any apps you no longer use or don’t trust.
Be careful only connecting new apps you fully trust.
Use a Restricted Profile
If you want to limit what people see overall, you can enable the Restricted Profile setting:
- Go to “Settings & Privacy”
- Click “Settings” then “Profile and Tagging”
- Enable “Do you want to limit the audience for posts you’ve shared with friends of friends or Public?”.
This prevents people who are not friends with you from seeing anything on your profile even if your friends have a more open sharing preference.
Deactivate or Delete Facebook
If you don’t want any public information visible at all, deactivating your Facebook account will temporarily hide your profile and information. Or you can permanently delete your account which will remove all your info from Facebook.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I make my posts private on Facebook?
Go to “Settings & Privacy” then “Settings”. Click “Privacy” then “Who can see your future posts?”. Change the audience from “Public” to “Friends” or a more limited group like “Only Me”.
Can I limit who sees my past Facebook posts?
Yes, under “Limit Past Posts” in your privacy settings you can restrict old posts to “Friends” or a custom group. Previous posts shared publicly will then only be visible to the audience you select.
Why can I still see old posts after I’ve limited past posts?
It can take up to 24 hours for past post privacy changes to take effect. You may still see public old posts briefly before they become restricted.
How do I stop non-friends from finding my Facebook profile?
Disable your profile from appearing in public search engine results by going to “Settings & Privacy” then “Settings” and turning off “Do you want search engines outside of Facebook to link to your profile?”.
Can I review everything I’ve shared on Facebook?
Yes, go through each option under “Privacy Shortcuts” and click “View As” to see what information is visible to the public or different groups of people. You can then update the privacy settings for anything you want to hide.
What’s the difference between deactivating and deleting Facebook?
Deactivating will temporarily disable your account and hide it from others. You can reactivate it anytime to get your profile back. Deleting will permanently remove all your information from Facebook. Your data cannot be recovered if you delete your account.
Protecting Your Privacy Checklist
Here is a checklist summarizing the key steps to limiting your public visibility on Facebook:
| Action | Completed |
|---|---|
| Adjust privacy settings for future posts | ☐ |
| Limit old posts visibility | ☐ |
| Review profile info sections | ☐ |
| Disable public searchability | ☐ |
| Review tagged posts and photos | ☐ |
| Create friend lists for selective sharing | ☐ |
| Remove unused apps | ☐ |
| Enable Restricted Profile | ☐ |
Conclusion
Facebook’s default public settings expose more personal information than many users realize or want shared. Luckily you have options like customizing your privacy settings, limiting past posts visibility, restricting who can find your profile, reviewing tags, creating friend lists, and removing unused apps.
Taking the time to carefully check and modify your privacy configurations can help prevent unwanted sharing. If you want complete privacy, deactivating or deleting your account removes your information from public view on Facebook.
Balancing your desire for privacy with Facebook’s open nature takes some effort. But utilizing the right settings gives you control over what is revealed about you publicly on the platform.