Protect Your Facebook Account
October 23, 2010
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Labels: Facebook , FB , hacking , Internet Tips and Tricks , password , phishing , security , Social Networking
Labels: Facebook , FB , hacking , Internet Tips and Tricks , password , phishing , security , Social Networking
That statement surprised me because even simple people in the Philippines are already hooked up with Facebook. Now, the trend is the continuous rise on the number of Filipinos opening an account on Facebook and it is estimated that the trend will continue in the coming years. In the Internet shops in my village, I noticed that people are giving more time to the Internet (specifically Facebook) than the popular online games.
The rise of the number of Filipino Facebook users also lead to an increase of identity theft and account hacking. I have seen many news items about it and many people are unaware how to protect their Facebook accounts.
Keeping your Facebook account from being hacked is easy and there are simple ways that you could do to prevent it.
1. Uncheck that Button and Don’t Autosave
A small check box (with the label “Keep me logged in”) could be found below the “email” field. Make sure that you had it unchecked before logging in to your account. You must do this precautionary measure whenever you are using other people’s computer, or a shared computer, or when you are surfing in an Internet café.
If you keep the box checked, then your account will not be logged off even if you close the browser or even if you turn the computer off.
Aside from unchecking the box, you must also make sure that your browser is not saving your login information.
2. Heighten Your Facebook Security
Hackers can do many things when they know some of your personal information, specifically your email address. By default, Facebook displays most of your personal information on your Facebook profile publicly. Everyone, even those who are not on your friends’ list, can see your e-mail address.
To restrict people from seeing your personal information, you must heighten your privacy settings. You could do this by clicking on the “Privacy Settings” link, which could be found on the “Account” tab on the upper right corner of your Facebook page.
The “Privacy Settings” link will take you to a page that lets you control what information you want to be shared publicly, to your friends only, or just known only to you.
3. Clear Browser History and Clear Private Data
Aside from auto-saving, browsers also store the history of the pages you viewed while surfing the Internet. So, when using Facebook, it is advisable that you clear browsing history and private data before leaving the computer shop.
For Firefox, click Tools >> Clear Private Data. A window will pop up and will ask you what information you want to be cleared. For Internet Explorer, you should click Tools >> Delete Browsing History. For Google Chrome, click the wrench symbol found on the upper right corner of the Google Chrome Window and then click Options. A window will pop out on which you should click the Under the Hood Tab and click on “Clear browsing data...” button.
4. Don’t Disclose Your Password to Anyone
I have a friend on Facebook who wants to give her password to me so that I could manage her account whenever she is not online. I did not accede to what she wants and told her not to give her login information to anyone.
Your Facebook account is your personal page and you should be the only one who could access it.
5. Always Log Out
This is the most obvious way of preventing your Facebook account from being hacked. However, I have encountered in many Internet cafes that some people forget to log off their accounts.
Remember that turning off the browser is not an assurance that your Facebook account will be logged out. Always make sure that you log off your Facebook account.
6. Create Strong Passwords
When creating a password for your Facebook account, it is better that you use both numbers and letters; and capital and non-capital letters. This will make your password hard to be guessed by would be hackers.
Also, create different passwords for your different accounts. Use different passwords for your Facebook, e-mail, Twitter, etc. so that if one of your accounts was compromised then your other accounts will be safe.
7. Never Hesitate to Change Password
If you doubt that your Facebook account was compromised, then you should change your password immediately. It is better to be sure that your Facebook account was safe than otherwise.
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So there you have it, some of the tips that you could use to protect your Facebook account. If you have more tips, then please leave a comment.
I also wrote an article related to this in Ahab Reviews and Tips, which give tips on how to prevent identity theft when surfing in an Internet cafe.
Good tips, Ishmael! There seems to be a rise in hacking of Facebook accounts! So all the more important for us to protect our FB accounts.
Great tips! More and more people are getting their Facebook accounts hacked into! So taking preventive measures are alswys wise : )
Not sure if my first comment got through so I posted another comment. Can't remember what I wrote for the first one : )
naku lalo na kapag nagcocomputer ka sa mga internet cafe..
i usually clear the browsing data bago ako umalis...
i used to do that when we still don't have internet here at home. but when the time we got one... I RISK SECURITY FOR CONVENIENCE. hahaha. ang tamad ko kasing mag-type so pag naka-remember username or password... direcho log in na. haha. okay i know, i know i should still not do that but... haha basta!
this one's helpful anyway. at least ngayon alam ko na kung panog i-clear ung mga cookies and stuff. thanks kuya ish!
p.s.
and now you can read my comments. hehe
@Foong:
You are correct.
There many cases here in my country where some people got the FB accounts hacked.
The hackers uses the hacked account to ask money from that person's friends.
Many people have been tricked into giving money to the hacker.
@Blue:
That's a good practice my friend.
Mahirap nang mautakan ng masasamang loob.
@Blue:
That's a good practice my friend.
Mahirap nang mautakan ng masasamang loob.
@Tine:
No, letting your browser save your e-mail or even password is alright because you are using your own computer at home.
You sholudn't do that if you are surfing in an Internet Cafe or using a shared computer at school (for example)
Haha...yah. Inayos ko na yung Comment System para maka-comment ka na.
Often people complain of their Facebook account being hacked but they find no solution to it. Eventually they landed up with a safe idea of removing their personal information from their account.
@New Baby Gifts:
You are right. It is better to keep your personal info safe by not divulging it online.