Here Are 3 Quick Ways To Help Limit The Personal Data Facebook Shares About You

As people across the globe continue to use social media platforms to connect with their friends and family, many continue to have concerns about how companies, like Facebook, are using the data they collect about them ― especially in the wake of so many changes with the platform.

Facebook, owned by Meta Platforms, has made headlines several times this month. CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that Meta would abandon its fact-checking program and that the company would end programs with practices aimed at promoting diversity, equity and inclusion. With Facebook and its parent company in the news so much lately, there’s been renewed interest and conversations online about the way people interact on the social media platform — and whether some will leave it altogether.

One way people are rethinking their Facebook interaction is considering what personal information ― such as the products you look at or your other online browsing habits ― is shared with the company. One TikTok user recently shared a video post, which garnered more than 70,000 “likes,” encouraging viewers to respond to Zuckerberg’s apparent attempt to appeal to President-elect Donald Trump by limiting access to their personal data on Facebook in order to hit at the revenue the platform generates from ad sales.

Though you won’t likely achieve full protection of your personal information as a social media user, there are a few simple things you can do to limit access to your personal data. This data could be anything from the pages you connect to, the people you interact with or the groups you’re a part of.

Regardless of your motivations, if you have any concerns about privacy, it’s important to be aware of the ways you can help limit how your personal information on Facebook is being used. Read on to find out what cybersecurity experts think about these methods and other important things you should consider if you want to reduce the data you share:

Facebook’s “off Meta technologies” activity function allows other businesses and organizations to share information about the way you interact with those companies with Facebook. In other words, the social media giant has access to your activities when you’re using other websites.

“This helps us do things like give you a more personalized experience on Facebook,” the platform states on its website.

Kevin Johnson, CEO of security consulting company Secure Ideas, recommended that social media users turn this function off.

“This is a good thing to turn off as it is not very easy for users to know if a site is using this,” he told HuffPost.

Alex Hamerstone, the advisory solutions director of cybersecurity consulting company TrustedSec, said he thinks turning this function off “can certainly help limit the amount of information about you that Meta has.”

“I am always in favor of informed consent, and users should decide whether sharing their data in return for seeing more relevant advertisements is worth the trade-off for them,” he told HuffPost.

To turn off the function on Facebook, go to your Settings >> Account Center >> Your Information and Permissions >> Your Activity off Meta Technologies.

Facebook states that advertisers may pitch to you based on information you share on your profile. For example, if you’ve listed your relationship status, your employer or where you attended school, this information may influence the ads you see.

Hamerstone emphasized that he’s always in favor of “informed consent” and that although denying this access will “lead to a less personalized experience online,” it limits the data you share about yourself with advertisers.

Johnson said that he views the choice to employ this method as a “coin flip” and that people will ultimately have to decide for themselves what they’re most comfortable with.

“Keeping this setting on means that I get better ads, but it also means that third parties get information about me,” he said. “I believe for myself that this is an acceptable risk.”

“If users are concerned about privacy, they should turn this off,” he added.

To disable this access, go to your Settings >> Privacy Checkup >> Your Ad Preferences on Facebook. The privacy tool will walk you through various steps, in which you’ll see the option to disable advertiser access to certain profile information.

Some apps, games and websites, such as Spotify and Airbnb, allow you to log in by using your Facebook credentials. Doing so can allow third-party websites access to information about you that’s shared on Facebook.

Facebook states on its website that those third-party sites can access public information you’ve shared but they can only access non-public information “if you choose to share it with the app, website or game when you log in with your Facebook account.”

Hamerstone pointed out that using Facebook credentials to log in to third-party websites can lead to a “more seamless online experience” but that it’s important to note it allows third-party access to “some degree of information.”

“In my experience as a user, the notifications regarding what information is shared, including whether it is just public profile information or additional information, [is] clearly stated when choosing this option,” he said. “Again, users need to weigh the value of convenience versus their feelings about data sharing.”

To remove this, go to your Settings >> Your Activity >> Apps & Websites.

Johnson thinks that, even though employing these methods to protect your personal data may be “less useful if you have had your account for a while,” it’s still “not pointless” to act now anyway.

To drive home his point, he referenced a popular expression: “The best time to start something was in the past, but the second best time is now.”

Hamerstone pointed out that in our modern society, the average person uses “countless devices, applications and services” that collect our data — and that that “is continuing to accelerate rapidly with additional smart devices being rolled out in homes and businesses and in so many aspects of our lives.”

But nonetheless, it doesn’t mean “we can’t slow down the collections of this data.”

“Users should certainly take advantage of the option to ask companies to not share their data when those options are available,” he said. “The most important thing is for people to really understand how much data is collected, how it is collected and how it is used, and then make informed decisions.”

Jacob Aurand, counterintelligence lead for cybersecurity company Binary Defense, told HuffPost that there’s “no real way of knowing” whether Meta is implementing the security and privacy settings it offers users correctly. But he said it’s “still worth doing if you are committed to using the platform.”

He recommended using multi-factor authentication for your accounts and disabling settings that allow you to be publicly searched or that allow people to search your friend lists, likes, comments and shares.

Chris Pierson, founder and CEO of BlackCloak, a concierge cybersecurity and privacy platform, said data shared on platforms, like Facebook, that are meant to tailor ads are “unlikely to cause direct harm to a person.”

He explained to HuffPost that although the data “could be useful in an attack of an advertising platform,” there are “more direct ways of attacking individuals for cybercrime or identity theft.”

Aurand said the “biggest threat” to a Facebook user is a bad actor who sets up fake pages and ads that can trick users into visiting malicious sites in order to attempt to steal login or credit card information.

Hamerstone said that in general, the “amount of data out there about each of us would likely shock the average person” and that some possible scenarios of how bad actors could use this information could “rival a Hollywood plot.”

“But, like most things, it makes the most sense to worry about what is likely versus what is possible,” he said.

Johnson said that his biggest advice to Facebook users would be to think about what you share.

“Way too many people share things as if only their trusted friends have access, and they don’t realize how many other people and sites have access,” he said. “Only share if you are OK with the world knowing it.”