Going through someone’s social media platform just to know more about them is not an uncommon thing. Many of us have done it in a bid to impress our potential partner or someone we like. But online stalking is a serious threat. There are several people who stalk someone with unethical intentions in mind. They often find out about your whereabouts, keep a check on our daily activities, and also use your pictures without permission. Here are some ways you can prevent your social media accounts from being stalked.
Privacy settings: To avoid being a target of social media stalking and bullying, we should always modify the privacy settings on our profiles. We can control who can view and contact us on the majority of social media sites, so we are not interrupted by unwanted people. Make sure you check who you are giving access to view your feed.
Do not divulge sensitive information: While sharing a new post or picture, try to limit the information you are giving out to everyone. For example, we should try not to tag our location each time we post a live update. Also, it’s much safer to share pictures once you have left an event or they are pretty old. Live updates give stalkers unwanted information about your whereabouts. Also, we should not indulge in responding to surveys or questionnaires circulated online. It increases the chance that someone will obtain your personal information about us.
Block potential stalkers: In case we suspect someone is stalking us, even if they are people we were previously acquainted with, block them from viewing all our accounts. Some social media handles also give us the option to report suspicious accounts and people who trouble us.
Make all your online handles different: This is a trick we all should follow. Using different user names and pictures on different sites is a good practice. It will be difficult for someone to find us on all sites we have accounts.
Software updates: Most software is developed over time to tackle any security issues on a device. So, it is important that we keep updating our devices to prevent any data leaks.
However, if we still feel insecure, or are constantly troubled by stalkers online we should report the issue to the cybersecurity department can take legal action against the perpetrator.
