What many people don’t realize and what makes social networks worrisome, is that when a user posts a comment, picture, or video, that information now belongs to that social network. Such is now the case with sites like Facebook.
That embarrassing picture of you drinking at an office party can now be used for public use and could potentially show up on a news article. That’s right, all rights to your photos now belong to the members of Facebook, Linkedin, or any other social medium you use.
Here are a few complaints about Facebook users who have complained about their privacy pictures being hacked:
“There is s women downloading my pictures and sharing them with wrongful information. I do not know this woman and I asked her to stop but she continues. How do I stop her?”
“I'm upset because someone has shared my photo and I do not know them. A random person who was supposedly my friend has shared a photo of mine with an inappropriate tagline.”
These people posted a complaint on social media about the misuse of their pictures and what did Facebook do? Nothing. There is absolutely nothing that Facebook can do because it is not under their guidelines for misuse.They have even settled FTC charges that they deceived their users.
This begs the question: what can be done? I have listed a few things for users to do because, seriously, there is nothing that Facebook and any other social medium can do.
Think twice about what you are posting on Facebook
This is a hard one, especially since everyone is posting like crazy. In an age where photos of food, selfies, and embarrassing scenarios are everywhere, it is hard to be the one person that doesn’t jump on the bandwagon of photo bombing. But it is crucial to understand that whatever is posted on your account can be seen and obtained by all, even if you use the “security” that Facebook offers.
Tell Facebook friends you want to approve photos or videos of you
Many people cringe when I mention this thinking that they would be ostracized for being uptight about postings, but this is the best way to stay safe. I explain to all my friends the importance of my privacy and whenever they post something about me, they get my expressed permission first. Most of the time I approve because just creating that boundary makes my friends and family think twice about their posts.
Remove Facebook from your phone
This is probably the hardest one that most of you can do, but it can save you so much despair. I removed Facebook from my phone when they kept asking me to download their newest update allowing them access to all my photos and videos from my phone. It is meant to make it easier for the users but I felt as though my privacy was being violated.
I will say, removing it from my phone made me experience life outside of technology as well as made me purposeful in checking Facebook. Many of you will probably think that this is a useless suggestion but I believe that we need to be conscientious of our privacy.
I hope that this article helps you realize that social mediums, though wonderful to use, should be used with extreme caution. Once we let our guard down, our photos, comments, and videos will no longer be just ours. Take the time to assess how much you give Facebook and whether it is for your benefit or detriment.
