In the era of oversharing, some people don’t think twice about what they share on Facebook. I am very protective of my privacy and that of my loved ones. That’s why you will never see me share certain things.
I never share my personal information (e.g., phone, email, and birthday) on Facebook because I love my peace of mind. Sharing such information can compromise my privacy due to unwanted solicitations and spam. It is also a security risk because cybercriminals and other malicious actors can use it to commit fraud in my name.
When I go to the Basic Info page on my Facebook profile, everything that can be hidden is hidden.
2 Family and Relationships
Just like I keep my contact information private, I keep the details about my family and relationships hidden. It’s easy for someone to snoop around my Facebook profile and direct unwanted attention to my family and friends.
I don’t want to be the reason they are harassed or stalked, and that’s why I keep this information private.
3 Travel Plans
Facebook allows you to post your travel plans as a life event, including the date of travel and the location. But why would I want to broadcast that I’m away to potential burglars? I wouldn’t, because that could make my house a target and put my family in danger.
I don’t share my travel plans, but I might share my travel memories after returning home. By then, it would be safe to do so
4 Location
The Check-In feature on Facebook allows you to post a location pin when you arrive at various locations, including cities, towns, restaurants, parks, and landmarks. It’s a great way to let your friends know where you are, especially if you want them to meet you there.
However, I never use the Check-In for the same reason I don’t post my travel plans—burglars. Also, I generally don’t like strangers tracking my movements, especially when doing something important.
If I want my people to know my whereabouts, I will tell them in person, message them, or drop a location pin in their DMs.
5 Friends List
At one point, I was getting a lot of strange friend requests on Facebook from people I don’t know personally. It dawned on me that they were sending them because they saw our mutual connections in my friends list. So, I made it private to make it a little harder for them.
Furthermore, I couldn’t stand the thought that scammers could go through my friends list to find potential victims. By hiding it, I can protect my network of connections from being targeted through social engineering tactics.
6 Pictures of Children
Children, especially babies, are cute. Understandably, people would want to share that with the world. However, I never post pictures of children on Facebook for one major reason—we live in the age of AI.
Anyone can take the child’s pictures and use them to create convincing deepfakes. Deepfakes are AI-manipulated images and videos that mimic real people and objects in order to harm or mislead. I don’t want deepfakes of a child I posted to end up somewhere in the deep, dark corners of the internet.
I also don’t want to post a photo of a child that could make them the target of cyberbullying or get preyed on by predators.
7 Personal Goals
I get that people post their personal goals on Facebook for various good reasons, including accountability, motivation, support, self-expression, and positive reinforcement. However, I never post mine because there is one big drawback—the act of posting itself and getting all those likes and comments can lead to premature satisfaction.
I don’t want the false sense of accomplishment that comes with premature satisfaction. It can be a motivation killer since it can trick the brain into thinking it has already achieved the goal. I would rather do things that will keep me focused, like using a goal-setting app to achieve my goals.
While Facebook is a great platform for connecting with friends and sharing experiences, it’s crucial to be mindful of what you let others see. I am selective about the content I share to protect my privacy, security, and mental well-being, which are extremely important now that we are in the digital age.