Facebook has been in the news a lot recently. Mark Zuckerberg bought the What's App company in February for a staggering, mind-blowing, huge – I'm running out of adjectives here – $19 billion. Then the company bought a little-known virtual-reality headset maker, Oculus VR, for $2 billion.
Those high-profile deals shouldn't distract us from the fact that Facebook's main business is selling advertising based on the mountains of information it's got on its user base. And when I say "user base," I mean me and you.
The targeting practices going on behind the scenes are both deep and complex. We the consumers have to stay on our toes to protect ourselves. It's sad to say, but a lot of privacy violations occur just because people don't know how to protect themselves.
These are great tips for you - and for your family. If there are kids in the house, make sure they understand the importance of these privacy protections early. And if there are less tech-savvy folks around, go over these tips with them, too.
So let's get started.First, you need to clear out your Facebook search history. Yes, it keeps track of all your searches. That's the reality of the world we're living in.On your Facebook home page, click the down arrow in the upper right-hand corner, and select Activity Log. In the left-hand column where it lists Photos, Likes and Comments, click the More button below those. Then at the bottom of the list click Search.Once you've clicked on that, you'll be able to see everything – and everyone – you've search for on the site. (It's kind of disturbing!) Up at the top of the page, click on Clear Searches, and then again in the dialog box to confirm.The search area should now be empty. You can't turn this feature off, however, so you will have to come back and do this regularly.Did you know Facebook's Graph Search system can expose your past posts to everyone? Learn how to keep strangers out of your posts.
Second, you want to make sure Facebook won't use your picture to endorse or sell products. Believe it or not, Facebook's terms of service allow your image to be automatically used if you've said you "liked" a particular product, or "checked in" at a particular store or restaurant.To stop this, let's go back to the Activity Log page and, again on the left-hand side, click on the Likes link. You'll see all your likes listed.It's smart to go down the list looking for companies that might advertise on Facebook. If you see one, go to the little pencil icon on the right, click on it, and select Unlike. Learn more settings to stop Facebook from using your name and face in ads.
Third, we need to dive into privacy settings. We all have to take responsibility for our online privacy.
I liken Facebook posts to a sign in front of your house. You think you live on a cul de sac, and the fact that the sign says, "Hey, we're on vacation," or "Hey, my daughter June just got an after-school job at the local Applebee's" really isn't that big of a deal.
We have to realize that with the wrong settings you're living on Main Street, and just about anyone can see your Facebook posts. Learn four ways burglars use what you post on social media to target you.So go to the padlock icon in the upper right corner of your profile and under "Who can see my stuff?" set "Who can see my future posts?" to Friends. And if you're been loose about friending everyone who asks, you might think about weeding out your friends list.You can also create a custom list of "Close Friends" - click here to learn how - and set your posts to be visible only to that list. The option to select a list is in the same place you select Friends.
Fourth, I have a tip for parents. Facebook originally didn't let the Facebook pages for kids be viewable by the general public – just their friends. That's changed. If your kids are minors, it's a good idea to go in and adjust their privacy settings to make sure they are set to "Friends."
You should also go to the down arrow in the upper corner, select Settings and in the left-hand column choose Privacy. Then click the Limit Past Posts link and set that to Friends as well.And finally, this is a tiny bit sobering, but if Facebook and your Facebook profile is a big part of your life, you should start thinking about what you want to happen if you were to pass away.Facebook rules decree that the status of your page will remain the way you had it in life; it will be "memorialized," as the company puts it, when they are presented with evidence of your passing.
On the Kim Komando Show, the nation's largest weekend radio talk show, Kim takes calls and dispenses advice on today's digital lifestyle, from smartphones and tablets to online privacy and data hacks. For her daily tips, newsletters and more, visitwww.komando.com. E-mail her attechcomments@usatoday.com
iPhone
If you're an iPhone user, you need to go into Settings, and then tap Privacy. Scroll all the way down to Advertising.You'll see a button labeled says, "Limit ad tracking." If it's not showing a green color, slide the button so that it shows green. This will stop ad companies from tracking what you do with your phone and serving up targeted ads.
Right underneath that setting, by the way, you'll see the "Reset Advertising Identifier" option. Tapping on that will zero out the anonymized identifier linked to your personal data on Apple's servers.In other words, to trackers you'll appear to be a new user. This can make it more difficult (but not impossible) for advertisers to build up a profile on how you browse.
Android
To turn off the Google "AdID" system, you don't go to your Android phone settings, but your Google Settings app. You might have to look under your full list of apps to find it.
Once you're in Google Settings, tap the Ads link and then tap "Opt out of interest-based ads." You can also see your advertising ID and tap "Reset advertising ID" to make a new one. This will make you look like a new user to advertisers.
Ads aren't the only way you're tracked on your phone. Google and Apple might be tracking your searches. Use this search app instead to make private searches.
Windows Phone
To turn off Personalized ads in Windows Phone, go to Microsoft's ad opt-out page and under "Personalize ads whenever I use my Microsoft account" click "Off."
You will need to be signed in with a Windows account to do this. Make sure you sign in with the same account you use on your Windows Phone. This also turns off personalized ads for Internet Explorer in Windows 8.
The future of tracking
Of course, carriers are working on ways to track you that you can't stop. Verizon and AT&T have experimented with "supercookies" that let any website know who you are when you visit.
COOKIES ARE NOT YOUR FRIENDS
Once the third-party cookies are gone, you need to change your browser settings to keep them away. For Internet Explorer, click on the gear in the top-right corner and select Internet Options. Go to the Privacy tab and click the Advanced button. Check the "Override automatic cookie handling" option, and then set "Third-party Cookies" to "Block." Click the OK button.In Google Chrome, click the three-lined icon in the top-right corner of your screen and select Settings. Under the Settings section, click the "Show advanced settings" link at the bottom. In the Privacy section, click on the Content Settings button. Under Cookies, check the "Block third-party cookies and site data" option and click Done.For Firefox, click the three-lined icon in the top-right corner of your screen and select Options (PC) or Preferences (Mac). Go to the Privacy tab and under History, set "Firefox will" to "Use custom settings for history." Then set "Accept third-party cookies" to "Never."
If you use Safari, third-party cookies are turned off by default, but it never hurts to double check. Pull down the Safari menu and select the Privacy tab. Choose the option to block cookies from third parties and advertisers.
To clear your search history, start by going to Google Web history. You'll need to sign in with a Google account.
Google Web history shows you every search you've ever done, organized by date. You have the option to delete individual searches, or clear your entire search history.To delete specific searches, tick the checkbox next to the search you want to remove. Then click the "Remove items" button at the top of the page.
To delete your entire Google search history, tick the checkbox next to the Remove Items button. This will select every item in the history.
Then click the Remove Items button.
Or you can click the gear icon at the top right of the page and select Settings. In the text, click the "Delete all" link. Then click on the "Delete all" button to confirm.
That's great, but won't Google just record your new searches? It will unless you turn off Web history entirely.
Click the gear icon on your Web History page and select Settings. Next to where it says "Web history is on" click the Turn Off button.
Of course, this won't automatically wipe out your search information. Google will continue to store your information for audits and internal use.
However, it won't be used to create targeted ads or customize your searches. It also means someone snooping on your computer won't be able to stumble across it.
