How to maintain privacy on social media

Being active on social media is an excellent way to connect and interact with customers. Still, there are some risks involved when posting anything online. 

Knowing how to maintain your privacy on social media can help protect your business and brand from exposing stuff you don’t want seen. 

Here’s how to maintain your social media privacy:

• Read and understand the privacy terms
• Familiarise yourself with site features
• Regularly check for privacy updates
• Be mindful of how you share photos and videos
• Be careful about what you post in general

In this guide, you’ll also find:

• How to manage privacy settings on different platforms
• Quick social media security tips
• BONUS TIP! Read on to find out. 

Follow these tips to maintain privacy on your social media business accounts.

Every social media platform has privacy terms to protect its users and themselves. 

So the first thing to do before registering an account is to read and make sure you understand their privacy terms. 

Pay attention to how the platform will use and share your information, including who can see and share your content by default. 

For example:

• Can your content be shared with a third-party company? 
• Can you delete your content on the site permanently?

Social platforms’ privacy policies:

• Facebook 
• Twitter
• TikTok
• Instagram

Next, ensure you understand how the site works before you broadcast or share any content.

Find out who sees your messages (everyone or only specified recipients?). Make sure you know all about the site’s functionalities before registering an account.

Learn more about site features here:

• Facebook Business Suite
• Twitter for Business
• Linkedin Business Solutions
• TikTok Business Account
• Instagram Business Tools

Social media platforms will update their privacy settings regularly, which can impact your account. So ensure you know what the latest settings are.

Maybe the site has updated its settings to give you more control over how your data is used? In that case, it’s good to know. 

Do you want to share a cute video of a child you’re watching to promote your babysitting business? 

Think twice before you post anything.  

Carelessly posting photos on social media could create a number of headaches for you. 

For example, parents might not be happy with you sharing pictures of their child, so always get their consent first. 

Be careful even when sharing a photo of your own child, your pet, or of yourself in your house. 

Does your selfie show a note on your fridge behind you that contains your clients’ address and phone number? Make sure you crop it out or cover it.

Being mindful is important when posting anything on social media. After all, once people have seen it, you can’t make them un-see it. 

Even if your privacy settings prevent certain people from viewing your content, you can’t control what your followers do with it.  

As a rule of thumb, only publish content that you feel comfortable sharing with anyone. And focus on building a good reputation for your brand. 

Social media platforms allow you to control your privacy to some extent. 

Here’s what they do:

Twitter lets you choose to either keep your Tweets public or protect them with extra privacy layers.

Learn more about how to protect your tweets here.

Whether it’s a business or personal account, you have control over who can see your Instagram posts, who follows you, and who can comment on your posts. 

You can also limit how other users interact with your account.

Learn more about changing your privacy settings here.

The Linkedin Privacy & Settings page allows you to:

• Manage your account settings
• Update your privacy and security settings
• Set your preferences for how frequently you’re contacted by and through LinkedIn.

Learn more about it here.

TikTok offers a range of privacy controls so you can choose the settings that are right for you. 

You can also request a copy of your TikTok data at any time. This includes information about your profile, activity, and app settings.

Learn more on TikTok’s security and privacy controls page.

As a bonus, here are some tips to help you keep your social media accounts safe and secure –– not just private!

• Create an email address just for social media – This way, if one of your company’s social accounts gets compromised, your other sensitive data will still be safe. 
• Use strong passwords – Strong and unique passwords are the first line of defence against security breaches. Aim for a mix of letters, numbers, and special characters.
• Enable 2FA/MFA – Two-factor authentication (2FA) or multi-factor authentication (MFA) requires more than just a password to access an account. This could be an approved mobile device or something more personal, like a fingerprint.
• Only login from your own devices – Try not to log into your social accounts from your own devices. But, if you ever log in from a device that isn’t yours, be sure to log out, or the next person can access your account.
• Delete your cookies – Websites use cookies to track your online activity. Deleting them regularly can help you reclaim a little of your privacy.
• Use the block button – If a stranger ever sends you dodgy links, ignore them and block the user. If the links come from someone you know, ignore the link and alert the person that their account may have been hacked. Better to be safe than sorry.

Countingup is the business current account and accounting software in one app. It automates time-consuming bookkeeping admin for thousands of self-employed people across the UK. 

Save hours on financial admin and focus on doing what you do best!

Get started today.