Have a look at your Facebook profile.
Do you share information about where you work? Your phone number or birthday? Is your profile open or closed? And how uncritical are you really with what photos you share on Facebook?
According to indy.com, many of us are surprisingly careless with what we gladly share on the world's most popular social network.
Maybe you should take a quick look at your Facebook profile and give it a good old spring-cleaning. Here is 8 advice on what you should delete from your Facebook profile.
1. Your phone number
Many people have their contact information freely available on Facebook - including their phone number. But why? Our closest friends already have our number so why put it online? If other Facebook users want to reach you they might as well just send you a message. At worst, you risk everyone having access to your phone number as facebook doesn't really have any problems with sharing your personal information.
Photo: Shutterstock
2. Your open profile
Unless you have a need for everyone to pry into your life, your photos and information - give up your open profile. Is there any reason why other people than your friends should be able to know what happens in your life? Moreover, there have been many examples of how people's private photos (from an open profile) have been stolen and used for anything from commercial ads to contact ads. Photos of your jewellery, designer furniture or classy car are particularly interesting for thieves.
Photo: Shutterstock
3. Your unimportant friends:
We are getting so familiar with facebook that it no longer impresses any of your closest friends that you have more than 800 "friends" on the social network. We all know that nobody has 800 friends. Most of them are acquaintances at best, so why be friends with them? Therefore you should clean up your contact list. A rule of thumb is: If it isn't a person you would say hi to on the street, you shouldn't be friends online. And you really don't know if that guy you met 5 years ago at a bar is actually planning on abusing your information.
4. Information that can be used for advertising
As mentioned, it is no secret that facebook has no doubts passing on your information if they can make a buck on it. It has already been announced that ads may soon pop up in your private messages on Messenger based on your private conversations, and if you also share info about your favourite food, TV-series or travel destination, you risk being bombarded with ads targeted directly at you. It is annoying and it feels disturbingly a lot like surveillance.
5. Your location
Many people have a habit of posting when they are where. But besides your friends being able to see that you've just "checked in" to the cinema or a restaurant, everybody else is also able to see your whereabouts. It is especially a bad idea if you obviously tag yourself as being home. If you do so, people will know where you live - information that, of obvious reasons, does not concern everyone. Particularly if your profile is open.
6. Your Holiday
If you have a closed profile with only your closest friends able to follow your life, it won't do any harm to write that you've just gone to Mallorca for a week. But the more open your profile is and the more people you tag in your post, the more people will be aware that you are away on holiday. Information, that you do not want burglars to get.
Photo: Shutterstock
7. Your personal information
As previously mentioned, you should actually share as little information as possible on facebook. Although it may seem as an exaggeration, without even thinking of it you are giving away a lot of personal and delicate information that people may abuse. Digital criminals love to get a hold of your address, your contact information and your date of birth. Information many of us give away gladly.
Photo: Shutterstock
8. Your silly photos
Even though you had an amazing trip to Thailand in 2009 or your Roskilde Festival was one big party, there is still no reason to share too personal photos. Many people are far too uncritical with their drunk-pics, bikini photos or other more or less inappropriate memories that won't be appreciated by your mother in law or your future employer. If you want to be taken seriously - silly and revealing photos are not a good idea.
