We are witnessing new technological advances every day now and our lives seem to move ever so gradually to the online world. Our personal data is also being moved online – and with it everything that we would fight to keep secure in the real world. How can you make your Social Media accounts safe and secure?
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More than 1 million Facebook accounts have been compromised in a data breach in 2022 only and one Google report found that 20% of all social media accounts will be compromised at some point.
In a world so digitally intertwined our privacy has the highest price. Trusting your Social media platform that using just a password to keep it safe isn’t enough. On this post, let's look at the practical ways on how you can make your Social Media accounts safe from hackers.
Be sure to review all your Privacy Settings
Each social media platform allows you to control who can see, like and comment on your posts or send you messages. Be sure to choose settings that allow you to spend your time on social media without having to think who are all the people that are sending you messages.
Prevention is the best cure, so make sure to not let everyone have access to your information.
Avoid oversharing your personal information on your Social Media profiles
Be cautious about sharing any sensitive information like your home address, phone number and travel plans because it can be exploited by cybercriminals or used for identity theft.
Posting photos of your personal ID documents such as passports and ID cards or even travel and concert tickets can lead to misuse of your personal information or loss of tickets, as they can be reproduced.
Make your Social Media accounts safe with strong and unique passwords
Your password is the first line of defense against unwanted intruders. That one word is what stands in your defense. A good password is one that combines uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols.
That doesn’t mean that it should contain your name and your age eg. !Michael35. It should rather be a combination that is hard to decipher. With that, try not to include names or ages of any of your family or friends, especially if you post about them on your social media profiles.
Use a separate password for all your social media accounts. That way, If someone does manage to break into one of your accounts, at least your other accounts will be safe.
The problem with this system is having to remember all your passwords. The hard way to do this is to write them all down on a piece of paper and keep it in a safe place. The easy way is to use a Password Manager to do that for you.
Something like this that can store all your passwords for you and can be accessed from multiple devices is your best bet. Password managers have been present for over a decade now and most of their users usually resort to them only after they had problems with either remembering passwords or, worse, after their accounts have been hacked.
Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)
Two-factor authentication in plain words is a combination of two ways to protect your profile – usually a password and an authentication by a mobile phone.
The way it works is really simple: you first enter your password on a website, then you grant yourself access to your Social media profile by using your mobile phone. That way even if your password has been cracked, the intruder still cannot access your account without accessing your phone.
It is mostly used by companies that are concerned with data safety and cybersecurity like banks, law firms or government entities.
Two–factor authentication has one big downside, though. If, for example, your phone battery is dead or you don’t have your phone with you, there is no way to access your social media profiles.
Be cautious of phishing attempts and Third-party Apps
Social media platforms can often offer you integration with other third-party applications and services. Before letting your apps do that, make sure to actually know what they are asking you.
What you will usually be asked to do is to grant some permissions and this is when you need to be really careful. Make sure to review all of them and if something doesn’t seem okay try and find out why that app is asking of you.
Nearly one third of all data breaches in 2022 involved phishing and it is estimated that over 3,4 billion phishing emails are sent daily.
When apps are asking you to grant them access to your accounts
Phishing attacks often involve fake emails and/or messages designed to lure or trick you to login to suspicious websites or your social media accounts, like Facebook or Instagram, and when you do that they just use your credentials instead of you.
Don’t let your online presence be in jeopardy because of just one message.
Almost every day now we are witnessing technological advances and with them also come advances in hacking so it’s really important to keep yourself educated on the subject of online safety.
Not enough people keep their online safety a priority, even though it’s what their online self depends on. Be sure to follow cybersecurity experts on social media and Youtube, subscribe to their newsletters and make sure to know all the ways that your privacy can be endangered.
Make your Social Media accounts safe by reporting any suspicious activity
If you notice any suspicious activity on your social media accounts, such as unauthorized logins, messages from unknown contacts or unusual posts, be sure to report it to that platform’s support team. They can take immediate action, investigate the issue and take necessary measures. Ask yourself these questions:
- How to make apps safe to use?
- How can we be safe online?
- What are the dangers of social media?
- How do hackers gain access to social media accounts?
- Which social media is most commonly hacked?
That way you are protecting not only yourself, but also others. Securing your social media accounts is an ongoing process that demands you take proactive measures.
By following these steps you can significantly reduce the risk of falling victim to cyber threats and maintain a safer and more enjoyable online presence. Be wise and make your social media accounts safe in an ever-evolving digital landscape.
