05/06/2011

Secure your Facebook Account

By TCS Software - Tom and Lisa Snide

Thanks to Tom and Lisa Snide at TCS for sharing the following suggested best practices.  OFDA encourages you to check these settings and follow the instructions below. 

1. Default to a "secure" Facebook account.

Next time you are on Facebook, check your URL address. If you see "http:" instead of "https:" then you do not have a secure session and your account could be at risk of getting hacked.

To protect your account, go to "Account" click on "Account Settings" then "Account Security" and click "Change." Check the first box, otherwise Facebook defaults to the non-secure setting. Now you can browse Facebook from anywhere without fear of being hacked.

When I changed this setting on my account, I noticed that someone in Chicago had been able to access my account without my authorization.  So be sure to check this setting.

2. Open up your newsfeed to all your friends and pages.

Have you ever noticed how you don't see all your friend's and family posts on your newsfeed wall?  There's a reason for that.

The "New Facebook" has a newsfeed setting that by default displays only posts from people you recently interacted with, or who you interact with the most. Unless a friend commented on one of your posts recently or vice versa, your personal profile or organization's page may not appear in each other's newsfeed.

To display all your friends and pages in your newsfeed, go to your Facebook homepage. Click the "Most Recent" title on the right of the newsfeed. Click on the drop down arrow beside it and select "Edit Options" and click on "Show Posts From." Change the setting to "All Of Your Friends and Pages."

Now you can see all your friends and pages again, but if your friends do not do the same thing, you will remain invisible in their newsfeed. Spread the word about this setting or comment on recent updates to get back in your friends' newsfeeds again.