Facebook is about to change the company’s privacy settings, again. This time around, new users won’t be subjected to sharing all updates with the world.
Wait, what? That’s right – the default status privacy setting is public. So, if you didn’t know how to make your posts private, you have been sharing everything with the entire web every time you post something on Facebook.
Now, if you’ve just starting an account, the default setting is private. You have to make it public if you want to share more. For everyone that already has a Facebook account, though, you’ll have to go through your privacy settings and change everything because your settings are currently public.
How to Make Things Private
Changing your posts to private or to share with just a select group of friends isn’t hard. It’s an option that’s always been there, but it’s one that most people don’t know how to use. Even worse, most people that use Facebook simply assume that all posts are private, and that they have to make posts public if they want to share with the whole Internet. Actually, it’s the other way around. You now have to opt out of sharing publicly. Here’s how to do it.
1. Every time you post an update, you will see a small dropdown menu at the bottom of the blank space.
2. Drop down that menu, and choose the people you want to share with.
3. You can also set up your privacy settings by going to your profile page, choosing privacy settings, and changing the groups of people you share with.
Why doesn’t Facebook just make all posts private to begin with? The companies that Facebook works with are thrilled that they can snag your personal and private posts every time you post something on your Facebook feed. This is how Facebook makes money. Now that people are protesting, Facebook has to change the way that it does business. The company will be launching a ‘Privacy Checkup’ that will allow existing users to see what their privacy settings currently are (because it’s not always obvious).
An Opt-Out World
Remember when you had to opt-in to something if you wanted that thing? Well, now our world is an opt-out one. That means that most companies will automatically sign you up for something, and if you want to get rid of that thing, you will have to opt out of it. It’s not fair, it’s a marketing trick, and it’s starting to make people angry. That’s why some other companies have gone the opposite route by pointing out that their privacy policies are more secure and flexible than Facebook’s.
Almost every month, it seems that Facebook is being reprimanded for doing something crooked. All of this bad publicity is causing a ton of Facebook users to quit the social network altogether. Possibly, rightly so. What do you think about this new policy? If you use Facebook, make sure to check your settings, so that you remain safe!