Final Thoughts on Social Media Privacy

This week's discussion on Social Media Privacy and Policy was of particular importance because the information we discussed was of immediate relevance and significance to our daily use of social media. As you know, we discussed social media security and policy as well as tips for using social media in a safer and more effective manner.


Retrieved from simplisafe.com

Through our discussions, we learned that social media security relates specifically to the settings we use on our social media accounts in order to safeguard our personal information. Social media policy refers to the rules and guidelines that govern social media usage, often implemented by employers or social media sites, in an attempt to promote appropriate and effective social media usage (Herrin, 2012). 

Between all of your blog posts this week, there were a number of similarities between your tips for safer social media usage. After reviewing all of your suggestions, I compiled the following list below which incorporates all your tips.

Themes for Safer Social Media Usage

• Know your social media settings: Be sure you restrict the visibility of your profiles to people you know and trust. Use great caution when accepting “friends” or “followers” so you know you can trust those people receiving you updates and information.
• Think before you share: This tip goes for both profiles and status updates. Avoid including too much personal information in your profile and also avoid using a close-up photo for your profile photo. These simple mistakes make your identity easier to steal. Also, remember that social media sharing is permanent. You cannot unshare something. You might be able to remove a post but you should assume that someone somewhere captured it. Think about how what you’re sharing could compromise your identity, personal or property security, or career before you share.
• Pay attention to passwords: You should use passwords that are difficult to hack. In addition, you should use different passwords for each account so that if a hacker happens to figure out one, they won’t automatically gain access to all your accounts. Ideally, you should change your passwords regularly.
• Use caution when clicking: Avoid clicking links that look suspicious. Remember that friends’ accounts can be hacked as well so just because it is share by a friend, doesn’t mean it is safe.
• Antivirus Updates: Keep your antivirus protection up to date.
• Be familiar with social media policies: Familiarize yourself with your employer’s social media policy and abide by the rules. In general, keep language positive, respectful and truthful. Avoid sharing information that is secret or restricted. You should also know your social media rights as an employee under the National Labor Relations Board.

Overall we had some great discussions this week. Throughout this IMC Program, we’ve focused on the many benefits social media can bring to an organization or brand when used correctly. This week we looked a little closer at some of the dangers associated with social media when used incorrectly. “Social media can be a fun and rewarding way to share your life and opinions with family, friends and co-workers around the world. However, use of social media also presents certain risks and carries with it certain responsibilities” (Herrin, 2012, para. 3). Thankfully, we are all a little wiser after this week’s discussion. I noticed that many of us mentioned that we have or will change our social media settings and/or usage after everything they learned this week. It's pretty exciting to see the immediate "real-life" application to what we are learning.

Special Message forTeam 5:

I wish you all the best of luck as you work through the final two weeks of this course. I encourage all of you to continue to post early whenever possible as this helps facilitate a more in depth discussion, You all did a wonderful job of incorporating images and videos to make your messages more impactful. Thank you for allowing me to lead this week’s discussion. I learned a great deal from each of you!

Reference

Herrin, B. (2012, June). National Labor Relations Board posts template social media policy. Legal HIMformation. Smith Moore Leatherwood, LLP.