Facebook is all about sharing, be it through your profile, photos, notes, messages, Wall posts, groups, or anything else on the site. We are constantly building and improving tools so people can make sure the stuff they share is seen only by the people they want to see it. It's up to each person to decide which tools they want to use, and decide who can see what.
But there are some types of sharing that we've seen more and more that we can't build tools for and are, in our minds, kind of questionable. We wanted to point some of those out here, so maybe people will think twice before doing them in the future.
- 1. Posting phone numbers on group and event Walls
It's an effective way to give your number to your friends, but it's also a good way to give it to people you don't know.
Lots of people create groups on Facebook about lost mobile phones. In theory, these are an easy and efficient way to recover a lot of lost numbers. In reality, with people posting their phone numbers on the group Wall, these groups provide an unfortunate example of people putting private information into the public realm.
The stuff you post in global groups and events can be visible to anyone on Facebook. If you get invited to a group or event about a lost phone, by all means, give your friend your number, but use a Facebook message. - 2. Accepting Random Friend Requests
Friending is a privacy setting on Facebook. That sounds weird, but it's true – when you become friends with someone, you're exposing your whole profile to them.
Now it's not like you've got your social security number in your profile or anything, but it's still a good idea to think about whom you let see your information. We never tell people when you reject a friend request, so you shouldn't feel bad about declining those from people you don't really know. - 3. Sharing your password
Imagine the horror of logging in to your account and seeing all your photos removed, your profile info wiped out, your friend list emptied, your messages deleted – all by an angry ex or a hurt friend. It's not a pretty picture.
Telling your significant other or best friend your Facebook password may seem like a safe thing to do, but passwords are meant to be private for a very good reason. Every day, our Customer Support team receives emails from people who get betrayed by someone that knows their Facebook login info. Don't let this happen to you. - 4. Posting pictures of people doing illegal stuff
Sorry, not on Facebook.
We hate to see stories about people getting busted for stuff they post on Facebook. But a little bit of common sense can go a long way when it comes to posting photographic evidence of an infraction or crime.
Under 21? Probably best not to post a picture of that keg stand from last weekend. Not in Amsterdam? Probably better to keep pictures of any illegal substances off Facebook. Not a big fan of wearing clothes? Probably worth leaving out the full frontal shots.
