The scariest time of year is right around the corner, but the biggest threat to your privacy may have been silently looming in the background all year long.
October is the perfect time to conduct a quick audit of one of the most commonly overlooked threats to your privacy: your public digital footprint. Any sensitive information about you that can be found online is at risk of being exploited by scammers – even information that you didn't intentionally share yourself. Here, PeopleFinders provides a checklist to identify and clean up potentially sensitive information so you can avoid a security scare.
What’s a Public Digital Footprint?
In short, your public digital footprint includes any information about you that's available online. Your public digital footprint is most commonly an accumulation of various online sources, including:
- Social Media Sites
- Search Engines
- Public Records
- People-Search Sites
- Professional Profiles
- Apps/Websites
What Does My Public Digital Footprint Say About Me?
Individual pieces of your information may seem tame enough, but when looked at altogether, they can create a scarily detailed profile of you. Someone searching for you could learn private information like:
- Your name
- Your phone number
- Your address
- Where you work
- Family connections
- Frequently visited locations
In this day and age, anyone who knows your name can discover your private information. Organizations like the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) recommend taking proactive steps, like limiting publicly shared information. Similarly, the FCC recommends taking steps to protect your personal data. But what do you do about the information that's already out there?
Your Public Digital Footprint Checklist: Overview
If you have personal information online, there's no need to panic. The goal of cybersecurity isn't to erase your online presence; it's to have a better handle on what information of yours is publicly available.
Get a handle on your public digital footprint by running through the following cybersecurity checklist:
- Search your name & information
- Check people-search websites
- Review your social media privacy
- Delete unused accounts
- Review app permissions
- Update passwords and security settings
How to Evaluate Your Public Digital Footprint
Before you can address your online presence, you need to know what it consists of. Start the process by evaluating your public digital footprint for weak spots.
Search for Yourself
The first step in protecting your information is knowing what's readily accessible about you. Search the following combinations and see what results are returned:
- Full name
- Name + city
- Name + employer
- Phone number
- Email address
- Common usernames
Check People-Search Sites
Sometimes, even information you never posted yourself is online. People search tools compile information from public records, social media, and other online sites. Plus, depending on the website, results may include phone numbers, relatives, age, addresses, and property information.
Consider running a reverse phone or email search on a people search tool to see what information is publicly associated with your name.
Review Your Social Media and Old Accounts
Next, you should audit your current and old posts for unnecessarily personal information. Look for:
- Addresses and location information
- Phone numbers or email addresses
- Workplace/educational information
- Birthdays
- Family details
When you review your social media, ask yourself one question: would I want a stranger to see it? If not, consider removing it or making your posts or account private.
Review Apps, Permissions and Privacy Settings
Next, review the permissions and privacy settings on your apps. Check which of your apps can access private information like your location, contacts, camera, photos, and microphone.
Websites and apps use these permissions to collect information about your browsing activity, internet searches, location, and devices. Revoke unnecessary permissions to further protect your privacy.
How to Clean Up Your Digital Footprint
Now that you've done a review of your information, take the following steps to further secure your privacy.
Delete or Hide Old Content
Keeping a strong handle on your online presence means knowing exactly what's on each public profile. Delete old posts, profiles, and accounts that no longer serve a purpose. Remove any unnecessary personal information from public profiles, and consider making your accounts private when available.
Secure the Accounts You Keep
Keep yourself secure with the following tips for digital security:
- Use strong, unique passwords for each account.
- Enable multifactor authentication, where available.
- Update outdated passwords, especially ones that may have been involved in data breaches.
- Keep your devices and software up to date.
- Remove unnecessary third-party app connections.
Close Unused Accounts
Delete accounts you no longer use, like shopping websites, gaming forums, and, of course, social media accounts. Removing abandoned accounts reduces the personal information that sits idly online.
Make Your Digital Footprint Check an Annual Habit
October is a great month to get your digital hygiene straightened out. Even so, this checklist should be a starting point, not a one-time fix. New accounts, websites, and information can change what's publicly available. For maximum online safety, consider doing an annual digital footprint audit. Once a year, make a point to search for your personal information, reinforce your security settings, and delete unused accounts.
Remember that the goal of cybersecurity isn't to delete your online presence; it's to give you a level of agency and control over your publicly accessible information. The right precautionary measures can save you a lot of time, money, and energy down the line.
This story was produced by PeopleFinders and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.