You can better protect your personal information, and identity, simply by reading the fine print (RTFP).
Facebook has received a lot of bad press about their privacy practices. They share a lot of your personal information with hundreds, perhaps thousands of vendors.
People were upset to learn that information they thought of theirs, became the property of Facebook and other social media sites.
There were stories of uploaded personal pictures showing up on billboards as advertisements.
$30 million for your photos
When I checked a year or so ago, Facebook had made $30 million in one year from selling users pictures to Getty Images. It was interesting for me to watch the media frenzy and public backlash.
Whether you agree with Facebook’s policy, or feel they should have different privacy policies is not really the issue. Facebook, Flickr and the other social media sites were very clear and upfront about their practices.
They advised anyone who actually read their “terms of use” and “privacy policy” what information they collected and what they did with it. The uproar occurred when the few who actually read it shared the information with a few friends, and so on, and so on.
The number 1 rule
With any self defense or personal protection strategy, the number 1 rule is to take 100% responsibility for your actions.
Let’s face it, it’s not very responsible to find a site, create an account and start using it without understanding the terms of use the site is requiring in order for you to use it.
Final Note: Once you actually read a “terms of use” and “privacy policy” in their entirety, it gets easier. You’ll be able to scan quicker through certain sections, while targeting “How We Share (or use) Your Information” sections.
The next time you are prompted to read, and agree to, the terms and conditions, take the time to read and understand them. More companies give you the option to “print” the agreement. If you’re rushed, go ahead and print them and read later in the day (or to put yourself to sleep that evening.
But read them. Protecting your information requires your involvement. Your involvement means reading the fine print.
