You would think that when
it comes to social media sites like Facebook, the people who use them are,
well, socializing, right? Well, apparently not everyone is in a particularly
social mood when they log in.
Here are 10 ways that people use Facebook to spy
on others:
- Checking Out Their Profile – Unless your
privacy preferences are set accordingly, your personal info is not
private. It requires action on the member’s part to safeguard from public
view what that member wants to keep to herself, or limit to friends.
- Friending – Once a person has become a friend
on Facebook, they can keep tabs on your status and posts fairly simply.
The tendency to automatically friend someone who friends
them can open doors that best remain shut.
- Fake Profiles – If someone wants to spy on
another, and cannot expect to be friended using their actual persona and
avatar, they might create a new one that appears less objectionable. This
is one way of circumventing privacy settings, and another is …
- Spoof Profiles – it’s also possible to use the
same name as another of the person’s friends to create an entirely new
profile. They can select a friend on their list whose profile suggests a
limited use of Facebook (ie, no profile photo, little personal info
provided on profile), and pose as that other friend on a different
account, adding mutual friends to the new profile as well.
- Friending Your Friends – It’s not uncommon for
members to confirm friendships with unknown people based purely on the
fact that they have mutual friends. So, the logic goes, they must be OK.
Not necessarily.
- Sending Gifts – It’s just a friendly gesture in
most cases, but it also opens your private info up to access by the 3rd party
app that the gift was sent through. This in turn leaves your private info
open to sharing with others who may want to access that info too.
- Reading posts – Although someone may not have
access to your profile directly, they may be able to keep tabs on you
through your friends’ walls and tagged photos.
- Adding an RSS Feed – In order to continuously
keep up with your status, it’s possible for a member to simply add your
updates and posts to their feed and then see whenever you are logged in,
right from their desktop or website.
- Send a Message – Social engineering attempts to
gain access to private info works essentially the same. In this case,
Facebook provides the option of sending a message to someone who isn’t
already a friend. It’s the first step toward gaining someone’s trust.
- Instant Personalization – Apps and programs
that can be linked to your Facebook profile, are another means for others
to spy on you. For instance, you’re reading a news article online and wish
to make a comment. The website offers you the option of logging in, using
your Facebook profile. Non-members can access your profile by following
the link from your user name.
Contacts and sources:
Christine Kane
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