The following list will provide for an outline for social media policy as well as social media network creation and implementation. Although not an exhaustive list, it can serve as a solid base to build upon.
• Ensure a proper firewall is installed- A firewall serves as a barrier for organizations to protect themselves from malicious activity. This is especially crucial if an organization deals with confidential information. This also protects consumers from having their personal information exposed. For larger institutions this would be handled by a designated IT department.
• Edit personal information on social media sites to limit exposure- As it was detailed in the module for social networking that we have reviewed, it is important to limit the amount of personal information displayed online. Things like year of birth, and hometown can leave you vulnerable to predatory activity because they are “crucial data to identifying people” (Lohr).
• Think critically about what information is being posted- Posting things like “check-ins” can assist malicious individuals in tracking your movement. This is dangerous because it allows them to know when your home is potentially vulnerable for break in. To prevent exposing yourself in this way, ensure that your privacy settings are correct and limit “check-ins” that could establish a pattern for your movement.
• Only accept friend requests from known associates and acquaintances- Accepting friend requests from everyone that solicits you is tantamount to providing personal information to anyone you see on the street. It is not wise to allow others that you do not know to access your personal information in this way. You can prevent strangers from requesting your friendship by updating your security settings.
• Ensure employees are well versed in setting security features on their social media profiles- As was evident from both our readings and from personal experience, security settings change far too often for people not to know how to monitor and change them. Training should be provided to ensure employees understand the procedure to change these settings as well as what an appropriate setting should be.
• Provide a detailed and specific employee social media policy- This information should be disseminated to employees to ensure that they are fully aware of what is expected of them when referring to social media. This should be distributed as part of the initial training and hiring process.
• Educate employees regarding the danger of social media- Employees should be well versed on how to interact on social media without causing harm to themselves or to their place of employment. Training individuals can prevent the potential release of confidential information. Even without malicious intent, the release of confidential information by an employee can not only mean termination for them, but legal issues for the organization as well.
Through the various readings from this week I have come to the realization that even when using caution, it is easy to post too much information on social media, potentially exposing you to phishing, or fraud. Understanding what is appropriate to post on social media and what is not can make the difference between keeping your job and possibly losing it. The most concerning element of this week’s reading is that it really only takes the smallest amount of information to potentially steal someone’s identity. That was particularly obvious in the New York Times article by Steve Lohr (link below) when scientists at Stanford University proved “that they could identify more than 30 percent of the users of both Twitter, the microblogging service, and Flickr, an online photo-sharing service, even though the accounts had been stripped of identifying information like account names and e-mail addresses”.
How Privacy Vanishes Online
Even the smallest amount of information could lead to identity theft, and unfortunately one can never be too careful.
Laura, this is a great summation of the finer points about protecting privacy and security. I was stunned when I read the last sentence discussing the NYT article. Holy smokes...30%!!! To me that is a staggering number? Is there anything to indicate that following all the steps that you listed to protect security and privacy that this number could go down significantly? Or, is it just the nature of social media that even following the rules cracking identities is just a matter of patience and time for the dedicated thief?
ReplyDeleteDoesn't it make you so nervous? i was thinking to myself that someone probably has my social right now...ugh. Although the article did not indicate that removing some of your personal information would reduce the likelihood of someone being able to piece together your social, it couldn't hurt to keep that information on a need to know basis. Like the saying goes, where there is a will there is a way. I think that if someone really wanted your or my information they would find a way. On the flip side of that, I don't think thieves want to work that hard to turn a profit, they would most likely go for the easy mark. Don't you think?
DeleteIt makes me think of what you would learn in a self defense class, check under your car, don't walk alone and talk on your cell phone, basically just remain aware and don't make yourself an easy target. I think the same rules apply here. Although it now seems like common sense, I think that most people take for granted their own security.
On a side note, I asked my boyfriend what the police academy says to them about speaking with the media and he told me that they are instructed not to speak to them under any circumstance. He also told me that there is one officer on staff that is trained to interact with the media. Juts thought I would share since we spoke about it on your blog!
You make a good point Laura... the same rules regarding safety in a self defense class can be applied to social media. That would make a great infographic don't you think? Social Media Self Defense.
DeleteI must say, in the past I have accepted every friend request I received (the past being up until last week). I even noticed some people that I was already friends with friend requested me again... after this weeks readings it makes me wonder if those were real profiles or fake ones?! I'm looking at social media in a whole new way and I think now that I am aware I can work on not making myself an easy target, as you suggested.
You're right! I wish I thought of it earlier! I've always been a little leery of friend requests from people I don't know. Not because they might be fake profiles (good point) but because I don't know them and why do they need to know my personal info? It definitely made me more self aware after doing the readings and completing the module. Thanks for your input!
DeleteHi Laura,
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting that great article. We read so much about the ever increasing lack of privacy, it makes me wonder what the future will hold. Do you think people will retaliate and begin living with more stringent behaviors to protect their privacy, or do you think society will continue to evolve in a way that will encourage people to become less protective of their privacy? I know that right now that might sound outrageous, but given enough time people are either going to submit or not to the increasing lack of privacy.
I think that, sadly, most are blissfully unaware of the dangers social media can pose. I think that most (young) people think that they can't be harmed through the use of social media. You know them, the people that put ALL of their business out there and post a "check-in" every time they go out.
DeleteI think that for those people who are reliant on social media as their primary source of communication it might take some insight to make them wise up. I know that I don't share a whole lot online, but that has nothing to do with my concern for security, I just don't. Before this lesson I hardly would have given any of this much thought. It made me realize just how little people may actually be aware of.
If one is not already there, I think that placing a disclosure on the security pages of sites like Facebook would serve as a reminder of just how vulnerable a person can make themselves when exposing too much online.
Hi Laura,
ReplyDeleteYour post had an informative list that was a great base to build on from! I have seen in many readings this past week about the “check-ins” feature. Many social media sites have this feature; some social media sites based their whole image on this one feature like Foursquare, where you can become “mayor’ of a place by checking in the most. If most social media site users decided to stop using “check-ins”, many social media sites would still be standing strong. I myself I have used Foursquare a few times but I do not like everyone knowing my daily routine. There have been friends of mine who have stopped using the site for this reason as well. What problems do you see for sites like Foursquare? Is there another route they can take?
I don't like people knowing all of my business either! It feels very unnatural to me.
DeleteI have heard so many shady things about Foursquare, like that it is a thieves paradise, because you are essentially posting where you are at all times. You might as well hang a sign on your door saying "I'm not here, please rob me!" I really don't know what the point of their site is other than making a game of it where people can become the mayor or their local Dunkin' Donuts. I don't get it. Who wants to be the mayor of Burger King?
Laura,
DeleteI have wondered the same thing myself. What exactly is the point of Foursquare? Is it supposed to facilitate friends being able to meet up? It seems senseless to me. I can see how it might benefit businesses in being able to target consumers through geo-mobile, but for personal reasons I can't understand its point.
I found an article on Foursquare, written by someone who has been a Foursquare "addict." You can view it here: http://news.yahoo.com/review-no-real-point-foursquare-yet-addictive-184716751.html.
The basic summary of this article is that yes Foursquare offers a way to find convenient locations for lunch nearby, and occasionally offers deals to the customer, but for this particular user writing the article, it is just for entertainment.
I can see it being used for the reasons of being out, wanting to grab lunch or shop somewhere and not being familiar with your surroundings, so look it up on Foursquare. It offers reviews on shops and restaurants which is a plus, but I think the “check in” feature should be voided. I remember restaurants having “specials” and “deals”, my neighborhood Chili’s had a deal where if you “checked in” you would get free chips and salsa, I think I’ll keep my privacy and pay the $3 for the chips and salsa! If I had to make a recommendation for them I would focus on the features it offers like the reviews and go off of that, make it so it was an app that provided useful information.
DeleteOh, I see. So it serves as sort of a Urban Spoon where you can tag yourself, or similar to Yelp. That makes more sense to me. I still think its sort of useless.
DeleteI remember reading about those deals Christine! I am with you on the privacy thing, but I also always forget about stuff like that.
Hi Laura,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your checklist. It's very helpful for anyone reading! Your thoughts on check-ins are interesting. Everyone seems to be checking in everywhere on Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, etc. You can even add your location to Instagram. This leads in to your point about thinking critically about what's being posted. Our personal brand is exposed when we post on our social media sites. We need to ask ourselves several questions such as What will this do to my image? Do I feel ethical about what I am posting?
-James
I honestly think I am too critical of things I post sometimes. If you were to follow me on social media you would notice that I hardly post anything at all. I am more of a grazer, looking at what other people post and liking or commenting where appropriate. I scrutinize the things I post to death. Maybe thats just me being weird. I am not sure.
DeleteAfter the readings I don’t post half of what I normally would post. I think it’s all about what you are posting. I like to ask my friends for recommendations on everything from places to visit to what books I should read next. I take a peer to peer recommendation over anything else. I just think when some questions that are being asked like “oh well when are you going on vacation?” that question I should answer personally to my friend not on the social media site. Then there are something’s you cannot control, like friends tagging you in locations and pictures. You can untag yourself but how many people have viewed it before you realized you were tagged in a post.
DeleteHi Laura,
DeleteI can be the same way! I just do not feel the need to share too much. Personal vs. business social media are two different things. On my personal page, I would use a completely different strategy than for a company page. I do not feel as much of a need to share too much personal information whereas in the work setting I would want to share information with and engage my followers.
-James