Community Chat

[scotnovel]

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@Chrystaltree2 wrote:

No one can be identified from a birthday.  Not if you omit the year. There millions of people born in the month, on the same day.  You aren't likely to risk identification usisin the year.  But, op, you are missing the whole point of FB.  People post because they want people know who they are.  They want to let the world know about pro options, weddings, vacations, new babies yada yada yada.  Give people some credit.  No one posts SSNs,  mother's maiden names and addresses.  Although they do post towns sometimes.  They aren't hiding from anyone and I think most understand the risks but they accept those risks because for them, the benefits outweigh the risks.  If someone is looking for an old boyfriend or a long lost cousin, how the heck are they going to do that without giving out personal information?  No one participates in FB because they want to be anonymous.  It's an election year and most of that information is readily available on voter registration forms.  Its also in your city registry, in your medical records, on credit card applications, school records.  The list is endless.  No one needs FB to find out anything they want about any of us.

 People actually DO inadvertently post their mother's maiden name when they post pictures of family members.  I see it all the time when people post their grandparents, great grandparents and other family pictures with names and even where they were born and buried.  

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[Shorty2U]

I agree people should use common sense on FB and on the internet in general. My first and last (maried) name are on FB along with my birth month and day (but not the year). Also I have it set to private. I do not post my address, phone number, OR my previous job or any other information. I do see some post their cell numbers. Not me!

[NYC Susan]

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@JustJazzmom wrote:

The funeral/wake thing actually happened to someone I know! A mutual acquaintance posted the info for all to see! Some of us had to tell her to remove it! Some people don't think before they post or what the ramifications will be.

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The same thing can happen by simply having an obituary notice in a newspaper.  Years ago, this happened to someone I know.

When my FIL passed away, my MIL had a police officer sit in their house the day of the funeral.

[AngusandBuddhasMom]

I don't know who you are friends with on FB but who would put their SS#,Address,Birth year ?? My security settings are set high so it looks like I have no friends or photos so I don't see the problem here.

[dooBdoo]

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          The problem is that many Facebook users are not "internet savvy."   As a result, they see the prompts to fill out all sorts of personal info...  so they do fill it out.    I see home addresses, accurate birth dates (complete with year), phone numbers, and family history surnames all the time.   And much more that isn't safe to share.   Add to that the fact that many people will be unware of the the privacy/security settings and/or will add "friends" they barely know or who also have wide-open settings, and it's a goldmine for criminals.

         I guess I don't understand why the criticism toward threads like this being started.  (It's no wonder many posters no longer start their own threads.)   Theses posts are good reminders for people to check their settings and also to share the information with their family and friends.   Just because I happen to know, doesn't mean everyone does.

[LTT1]

@dooBdoo

I have seen (and caught it) that when I want to share a public post (let's say a healthy recipe post) FB tends to default to "friends" and "friends of friends."

I always uncheck that option... it isn't fair to burden my contacts' friends with stuff they may not want.

[Iluvhandbags]

Mother's Maiden Name - when was the last time you saw that as a "security" question?

Too easy to find out so they hardly use that anymore. Now it is questions of a more personal nature; like your childhood pet, your dream vacation spot, etc.

Which makes me cringe when I see people on FB passing around those stupid quizzes/surveys that say "Just for Fun" answer these questions. And of course, what do you suppose the questions are?? Yep! Your first pet's name, your dream vacation spot, your anniversary date, your maid of honor's name.......

Just use some common sense. Stop the bait and clicking. Stop the stupid "surverys". Not that difficult to maintain your security and enjoy socializing at the same time.

[dooBdoo]

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@LTT1 wrote:

@dooBdoo

I have seen (and caught it) that when I want to share a public post (let's say a healthy recipe post) FB tends to default to "friends" and "friends of friends."

I always uncheck that option... it isn't fair to burden my contacts' friends with stuff they may not want.

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          @LTT1, For your posts you can change settings.  Look under Settings, then Privacy.   You can even use the "Limit The Audience for Old Posts on Your Timeline" for past posts.   There also are individual "audience" settings for photo albums and images.   Then, if you want, you can change the audience when you add a post.

[dooBdoo]

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@Iluvhandbags wrote:

Mother's Maiden Name - when was the last time you saw that as a "security" question?

Too easy to find out so they hardly use that anymore. Now it is questions of a more personal nature; like your childhood pet, your dream vacation spot, etc.

Which makes me cringe when I see people on FB passing around those stupid quizzes/surveys that say "Just for Fun" answer these questions. And of course, what do you suppose the questions are?? Yep! Your first pet's name, your dream vacation spot, your anniversary date, your maid of honor's name.......

Just use some common sense. Stop the bait and clicking. Stop the stupid "surverys". Not that difficult to maintain your security and enjoy socializing at the same time.

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          I agree with most of your post, but just to clarify...  mother's maiden name still is used by some sites as a security question and criminals use it in obtaining records, etc., when perpetrating identity theft.

          I really do wish people would make themselves aware of the problems inherent in clicking on the bogus "surveys" and fake "quizzes," as you said.   I've even posted clear warnings about it on my Timeline, shared countless articles, and the same people continue to "click and share."  And then they complain because their account gets hacked or spammed, their email gets flooded with junk, or even the unwanted phone calls increase.   Some of that goes back to using social media without first making ourself aware of all the settings and safe/unsafe activites.

[NYC Susan]

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@Shorty2U wrote:

I agree people should use common sense on FB and on the internet in general. My first and last (maried) name are on FB along with my birth month and day (but not the year). Also I have it set to private. I do not post my address, phone number, OR my previous job or any other information. I do see some post their cell numbers. Not me!

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You're right - It comes down to common sense. Not just on FB, but anywhere on the internet.

My FB privacy settings are tight.  My friends are all people I know.  I play games, but I've never accepted a friend request from a stranger.  If people are unsure of how to use privacy settings, they should ask someone who knows.  And use common sense.

I have a few friends who are teachers.  They don't want to be in the awkward position of having to turn down friend requests from students.  So their FB names are not their actual names, and their friends and family know.  There's no rule that any actual information has to be provided.  Where I live is not listed on my FB page, and I haven't provided other info as well.  And my actual name is not Susan, although that's what I use here.  There are lots of easy ways to help protect privacy.

Thanks to the OP for posting this for those who needed the information.