Facebook’s sharing settings allow users to control who can see their posts and profile information. These settings are important for managing privacy on Facebook. The sharing on Facebook settings can be accessed in a few different ways, depending on what version of Facebook you are using.
Accessing Sharing Settings on Desktop
If you are using Facebook on a desktop computer, here are the steps to access your sharing settings:
- Click on the arrow in the top right corner of any Facebook page and select “Settings” from the dropdown menu.
- In the left sidebar, click on “Privacy.”
- Under the “Your Activity” header, click on “Edit” next to “Activity Privacy.”
- This will open a page with various sharing options for controlling things like who can see your posts, who can look you up using your phone number or email address, who can see your friends list and more.
Alternatively, you can access these settings by:
- Clicking on the question mark icon in the top right corner of any Facebook page.
- Selecting “Settings & Privacy” from the dropdown menu.
- Choosing “Settings.”
- Clicking on “Privacy” in the left sidebar.
This will open the “Privacy Settings and Tools” page where you can navigate to the “Your Activity” section to access your sharing options.
Accessing Sharing Settings on Mobile
If you are using Facebook on a mobile device, here are the steps to access your sharing settings:
- Tap on the three horizontal lines “hamburger” icon in the top right corner of the Facebook app.
- Select “Settings & privacy” from the menu.
- Tap on “Settings.”
- Tap on “Privacy.”
- Tap on “Edit” next to “Activity Privacy.”
This will open up the page with all of your sharing options for controlling things like who can see your posts, friends list, contact info and more.
Key Sharing Settings
Here are some of the key sharing settings you may want to adjust:
- Who can see your future posts? Control whether your posts are Public, Friends, or More Limited.
- Review all your posts and things you’re tagged in. View and change visibility of past posts.
- Limit the audience for posts you’ve shared with friends of friends or Public? Change older posts to Friends only.
- Who can see your friends list? Choose whether friends, specific friends, or only you can see your full friends list.
- Who can look you up using the email address or phone number you provided? Limit lookup to friends, specific people or disable lookup.
Adjusting these settings can help you control who sees what you share and limit your public exposure.
Other Activity Privacy Settings
In addition to your main sharing settings, there are a few other activity privacy options you can configure:
- Location Services. Control whether your location is attached to your posts and if friends can see your current location.
- Face Recognition. Manage whether Facebook can recognize you in photos and videos you’re tagged in by friends.
- Apps and Websites. View which third-party apps and sites you’ve logged into with Facebook and edit their permissions.
Reviewing these other settings can help you manage your privacy beyond just what you directly share on Facebook.
How Sharing Settings Impact Tagging
Your sharing settings don’t just control your own posts – they also impact things you’re tagged in by friends.
For example, if you limit future posts to Friends only, then photos and posts you’re tagged in by friends will only be visible to their friends who are also your friends. The privacy is based on your own settings, not the person tagging you.
Managing Past Posts
For posts made in the past, you can review and limit their visibility in a couple of ways:
- Go to your Activity Log and use the filters at the top to show only posts. Adjust visibility for individual posts as desired.
- Or go to your sharing settings and choose “Limit Past Posts” to change visibility of all public/friends of friends posts older than a certain date.
This can help curate your visible posts if you want to increase privacy on older content.
Additional Privacy Tips
In addition to the main sharing settings, keep these privacy tips in mind:
- Be cautious when accepting friend requests from people you don’t know, as they will be able to see your non-public posts.
- Review tagged posts before accepting tags to ensure you’re comfortable with the visibility.
- Delete or untag yourself from any posts you don’t want public.
- Use audiences to share content just to specific friend lists.
- Periodically review and update your privacy settings.
Conclusion
Controlling your privacy on Facebook goes beyond your main sharing settings. Be sure to review all your options under Privacy Settings and Tools. Check your settings periodically, as Facebook may change options or defaults over time. Balancing your privacy with connectivity on social media is an ongoing process. But with the right settings and vigilance, you can manage your sharing and visibility on Facebook to match your comfort level.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Who can see your future posts? | Controls the audience for your new posts (Public, Friends, More Limited). |
| Review all your posts and things you’re tagged in | Allows you to review and change visibility of your previous posts. |
| Limit the audience for posts you’ve shared with friends of friends or Public | Lets you reduce the audience of older public/friends of friends posts. |
| Who can see your friends list | Select who can view your full friends list. |
| Who can look you up using email/phone number you provided | Controls who can search for your profile using your contact info. |
Key Facebook Privacy Settings
Facebook’s privacy settings allow you to control who can see your profile information, posts, friends list, location data, and more. Here are some key settings to check:
- Future posts audience – Set posts to public, friends only, or more limited groups.
- Limit old posts – Change visibility of public/friends of friends posts older than a certain date.
- Friends list visibility – Decide who can see your full friends list.
- Lookup options – Disable email/phone lookup or limit to friends.
- Location services – Control whether your device location is attached to posts.
- Face recognition – Manage whether Facebook can recognize you in others’ photos/videos.
Reviewing these options regularly can help you maintain your preferred privacy settings as Facebook’s options evolve over time.
Sharing Settings Impact on Tagging
Your privacy settings on Facebook don’t just control your own sharing – they also impact things you’re tagged in. For example:
- If your posts are limited to friends, tagged posts will be too.
- With public search off, you can’t be found in friends’ public tagged posts.
- If friends list is only visible to you, tagged posts won’t show it.
So your privacy settings extend to posts you didn’t make yourself. Review tags carefully and untag if needed.
Managing Past Posts
To curate older posts, you have a few options:
- Review/edit individual posts in your Activity Log.
- Limit audience of public/friends of friends posts older than a certain date.
- Delete or untag posts you no longer want public.
Facebook privacy is complex, with many interconnected settings. But investing time in learning the options can help safeguard your profile. Review settings regularly and use privacy features like friend lists, audiences and more.