This post describes the method of securing your Facebook profile.
Open Facebook and go to your Wall / Timeline.
On the right of the menu items, you will find a down arrow. Click on the arrow and a drop-down menu will appear, as can be seen in the graphic below:
Click on Settings (which I have indicated by an arrow).
The Privacy Settings and Tools screen will appear as shown below.
The first option is "Who can see your future posts?"
To change this option click on the Edit button that I have indicated with an arrow.
Click on the drop-down box and choose Friends as shown below:
Click on the close button to save this option.
The next option to deal with is "Limit Past Posts". This will hide your past posts on your Wall / Timeline from all but friends.
Click on the "Limit Past Posts" button and the following screen will appear:
The screen below will appear. Click on the "Limit Past Posts" button.
Don't be put off by the warning: "The only way to undo this will be to change the audience of each post one at a time". This is only relevant if you want some of your posts to be public (ie to be seen by anyone). I expect that this will rarely be the case, and if it is only for a small number of posts.
I could extend this post to a tedious length by going through the process of changing the other settings in the detail above. I hope the process is clear.
One important change is to limit "Who can see your friends list?" I chose "Only Me" from the drop-down box in that section. The reason for this is that it is the best security. It completely hides the friends list from non-friends. Friends can see only mutual friends.
You can check how you Wall / Timeline will look to non-friends and friends.
On your Wall / Timeline you will see the option "View Activity Log". Click on the three dots and two options will appear. Click on "View As ..." as shown below:
The screen that will now appear is how your timeline will appear to a non-friend. You can select to see how it will look to a specific friend by clicking on the "View as Specific Person" option near the top of the screen, as shown below, and entering the person's name.
The options that I recommend are:
Some people will think these options are unduly restrictive. Your preferences will depend on your reasons for having a Facebook account. One of these options is very important though: limiting your friends list is important as it protects your friends from unwanted communications.
The processes are similar to those described above, but the privacy settings are accessed from different places in different versions of the Facebook App. The link will called either "Privacy Settings" of "Privacy Shortcuts". They can be found in the left menu if your version has that feature, which is where it is in my iPad. On my iPhone it is in the More menu which is a circle with three dots inside it.
Facebook on your computer
Open Facebook and go to your Wall / Timeline.
On the right of the menu items, you will find a down arrow. Click on the arrow and a drop-down menu will appear, as can be seen in the graphic below:
Click on Settings (which I have indicated by an arrow).
 |
The menu at left will appear. Click on Privacy which I have indicated with an arrow. |
The Privacy Settings and Tools screen will appear as shown below.
The first option is "Who can see your future posts?"
To change this option click on the Edit button that I have indicated with an arrow.
Click on the drop-down box and choose Friends as shown below:
Click on the close button to save this option.
The next option to deal with is "Limit Past Posts". This will hide your past posts on your Wall / Timeline from all but friends.
Click on the "Limit Past Posts" button and the following screen will appear:
The screen below will appear. Click on the "Limit Past Posts" button.
Don't be put off by the warning: "The only way to undo this will be to change the audience of each post one at a time". This is only relevant if you want some of your posts to be public (ie to be seen by anyone). I expect that this will rarely be the case, and if it is only for a small number of posts.
I could extend this post to a tedious length by going through the process of changing the other settings in the detail above. I hope the process is clear.
One important change is to limit "Who can see your friends list?" I chose "Only Me" from the drop-down box in that section. The reason for this is that it is the best security. It completely hides the friends list from non-friends. Friends can see only mutual friends.
You can check how you Wall / Timeline will look to non-friends and friends.
On your Wall / Timeline you will see the option "View Activity Log". Click on the three dots and two options will appear. Click on "View As ..." as shown below:
The screen that will now appear is how your timeline will appear to a non-friend. You can select to see how it will look to a specific friend by clicking on the "View as Specific Person" option near the top of the screen, as shown below, and entering the person's name.
The options that I recommend are:
| Who can see future posts | Friends |
| Limit the audience for posts you've shared ... | Limit Past Posts |
| Who can send you friend requests | Friends of Friends |
| Who can see your friends list | Only Me |
| Who can look you up using your email address | Friends |
| Who can look you up using the phone number you proveded | Friends |
| Do you want search engines outside Facebook to link to your profile | No |
Some people will think these options are unduly restrictive. Your preferences will depend on your reasons for having a Facebook account. One of these options is very important though: limiting your friends list is important as it protects your friends from unwanted communications.
Facebook on tablets and phones
The processes are similar to those described above, but the privacy settings are accessed from different places in different versions of the Facebook App. The link will called either "Privacy Settings" of "Privacy Shortcuts". They can be found in the left menu if your version has that feature, which is where it is in my iPad. On my iPhone it is in the More menu which is a circle with three dots inside it.
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