Digital security experts warn that leaving account settings at default may allow strangers to view details such as public posts, friends list, personal photos, and some identifying information, which fraudsters or impersonators may exploit to collect information about the user.
Specialists point out that Facebook provides a set of privacy tools that allow the user to control who can view his posts, photos, and personal information. Among these tools is the ability to limit the display of posts to “friends” only, hide the friends list, and prevent external search engines from linking the account to search results, as well as controlling who can send friend requests or find the account using a phone number or email.
Experts also advise using the “Privacy Checkup” tool provided by Facebook, as it helps the user review the most important account settings step by step, and ensure that sensitive information is only shown to the people he chooses.
Specialists confirm that reviewing these settings only takes a few minutes, but they may significantly reduce the risks of impersonation or collecting personal information, especially with the increase in electronic fraud operations that rely on data published on social media sites.
Experts also stress the importance of reviewing privacy settings periodically, especially after application updates, as Meta may add new features or modify some options, which requires ensuring that the account settings still match the level of privacy that the user wants.
Specialists conclude that protecting privacy on Facebook does not depend on refraining from posting, but rather on knowing who can see the content, and taking advantage of the tools provided by the platform to limit strangers’ access to personal information.
