Avoiding Social Media Traps – Essential Tips for Privacy and Safety

In the digital era where smartphones, tablets, laptops, and portable gadgets rule our daily lives; social media platforms have turned into more than just a means of keeping connected. They’re now almost essential tools that enable us to stay informed about current affairs, learn new skills, find jobs or even run businesses.

However, the technological advancements carry along with it significant concerns associated primarily with privacy and safety. Cybercriminals are inventing novel ways of misusing information widely available on these platforms because users lack sufficient knowledge on securing their online presence effectively.

Henceforth in this article we'll share some tips to ensure your activities on social media don’t expose you to undue risk.

Setting Up Your Account Securely

Use Strong Passwords

Simple passwords can be easily guessed by hackers while complex ones put up a daunting task. Remember to use random combinations of uppercase letters, lowercase letters, numbers and special characters if allowed. Do not repeat passwords across different platforms as breaching one account may compromise all others linked using the same password.

Two-factor Authentication

Activating two-factor (2FA) or multi-factor authentication adds another layer of security wherein after entering your login details you're asked for an additional piece of information such as a code sent via Text Message/email or approving sign-in from another trusted device. This prevents unauthorized access despite someone else knowing your username/password combination.

Managing Your Digital Footprints

Every action taken online leaves behind digital footprints which when pieced together create your online profile that could potentially help an imposter mimic you convincingly enough to bypass basic security measures or conduct actions damaging to both finances & reputation alike - here's how:

• Restrict oversharing: Personalized options like geotags in photos reveal too much detail about location habits making it easier for anyone malicious looking out chances.

• Think before you post: Public statuses, tweets or stories are visible to everyone irrespective of being friends/followers. Therefore think twice about posting contact details, visual clues about home/location, holiday plans, etc.

• Limit friend requests/connections: Approving all connection requests leaves yourself exposed as the individual might not be who they portray themselves to be.

Protecting Your Privacy

Proactively adjusting privacy settings on each social media platform is worthwhile - here’s a rapid guide:

Facebook: Under 'Settings & Privacy' option in your account dropdown menu find ‘Privacy checkup’ that guides through various privacy settings including posts visibility (public/friends), profile information permissions and even apps linked via Facebook.

Twitter: Choose who can see your tweets by heading over into 'settings and privacy', then 'privacy and safety'. You can choose for your Tweets to remain public or locked from people who aren't following you. Also reduce exposure related risks by removing location tags from previous posts under the ‘Privacy & Safety tab’.

Instagram: Visit options using vertical dots (Android) / gear icon(iOS)-> scroll down till ‘Account privacy’. Set it towards private such that only approved followers view posts.

Remember allegedly ‘private’ accounts have been breached in the past thus assume nothing shared online remains confidential forever.

Avoid Clickbait Scams

Cybercriminals often lure victims clicking links promising exclusive content/offers. This could insert malware onto devices risking data theft/extortion which is why never click unfamiliar URLs received via email/inbox messages unless link source/trustworthiness has been verified independently.

In conclusion while absolute online security remains elusive; implementing these simple guidelines certainly heavily weighs odds against cyber threats ensuring an enjoyable yet secure social media experience!