Guy Ash's List: Online Etiquette

" How to Avoid Facebook & Twitter Disasters.
Authors:
Null, Christopher
Source:
PC World; August 2009, Vol. 27 Issue 8, p97-103, 7p
Physical Description:
Illustration
Document Type:
Article
Subjects:
Twitter (Web resource); Facebook (Web resource); Internet -- Security measures; Online etiquette; Internet & privacy
Abstract:
The power of social networks such as Facebook and Twitter lies in their ability to quickly share personal information with others, but there is also the risk of sharing sensitive information with the wrong people. Using Twitter and Facebook effectively requires more than discretion, and users should know how to adjust the settings so that they have full control over who sees what. Advice is provided on using the available tools to keep online profiles in check and on handling Twitter and Facebook etiquette.
ISSN:
07378939
Accession Number:
504310587
Database:
Science Full Text Select (H.W. Wilson)

Translate Full Text:

HTML Full Text
HOW TO AVOID Facebook & Twitter DISASTERS

AUTHOR: CHRISTOPHER NULL
TITLE: HOW TO AVOID Facebook & Twitter DISASTERS
SOURCE: PC World 27 no8 97-103 Ag 2009
COPYRIGHT: (C) PC World Communications, Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Electronic or photographic reproduction, retransmission or redistribution is expressly prohibited. Licenses for photographic reproductions and corporate and educational usage, including internal electronic network storage, retrieval and printing, are available through Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, Tel: (508) 750-8400

The power of social networks Like Face-book and Twitter comes from their ability to quickly share information about your life with other people. But along with that ability comes the risk of sharing sensitive information with the wrong people, and that risk increases as your network grows well beyond your core circle of friends.
Using Twitter and Facebook effectively takes more than discretion; you should know how to tweak the settings for these services so that you have full control over who sees what on your Facebook page or on Twitter. In this story, we'll cover both sides of the coin: how to use the tools at your disposal to keep your profiles in check, and how to handle the etiquette side of the equation, as well.
The garden-variety freshman may not have much to worry about, but it's a different story if you -- as many people are increasingly doing -- are using Face-book and Twitter not for updates about your meals, pets, and drinking binges, but for professional purposes. So we've outlined here a handful of common disastrous scenarios in which one (or both) of these social networks was misused, as well as the best way to prevent or remedy the problem.
But in the end you'll find that the fundamental lesson is invariably the same, and that's to remember the golden rule of all social networks: Never forget that the whole world is watching.

FACEBOOK DISASTERS
Ignoring Facebook's privacy options -- some of them fairly new and not well known -- can trip up users in a number of ways. Here are some of them.

OVERSHARING WITH THE BOSS
The disaster: Ann played hooky from work, calling in sick, and spent the day sunbathing, updating her Facebook status on her laptop all the while. The next day, her boss confronted her with the evidence that she wasn't really ill, causing severe embarrassment and a reprimand (plus a day of docked pay).
The solution: In this day and age, professional and personal lives often become intertwined, and Facebook can be ground zero for this. You might momentarily forget that you have "friended" your boss, and that he has the same access to your ramblings on Facebook as do your real-life drinking buddies. But you can change that.
Using Facebook's Lists settings might have made the most sense for Ann. Lists, one of the newer features of Face-book, allow you to organize people into groups and then assign each group different levels of access to your information on Facebook.
Lists let you set who can see what on your profile. For example, if you've added someone as a friend but aren't sure about them, you can relegate them to a list that you name "Limited Profile," which will limit how much of your profile that person may view and interact with. You can also create lists for work, school, special projects, or anything else, but by default the lists don't change how your profile displays.
To work with Lists, click the Friends button (top bar) and +Create in the left column under Lists -- or just put people on any list by using the 'Add to list' drop-down menu next to their name.
Next, you need to specify how much of your information on Facebook members of each list can see. To do this, visit the Privacy Settings page (hover over 'Settings' in the top right of the screen, and click Privacy Settings inside the box that pops up; or go to www.facebook.com/privacy), then select Profile. Here, select Customize... from the dropdown menu next to whichever section you'd like, and type the name of the list in the box under 'Except These People'. For Ann, dropping her workmates into a "work" list and dialing down that group's access to the bare minimum would have saved her a lot of trouble. Specifically, she should change the 'Status and Links' setting so as to exclude the Limited Profile list.

HE KNOWS WHERE YOU LIVE
The disaster Getting far away from ex-boyfriend Bob wasn't the main reason Mary moved to Pittsburgh, but it was one of the main benefits. So when Bob showed up at her new job, she was naturally disturbed. How did he find out where she was, she asked. "It was on your Facebook profile," he replied.
The solution: All users have extremely fine-grained control over what gets on their Facebook page, but few take full advantage of these features.
The controls are found in the Privacy Settings page under 'Profile', reachable as outlined above. Here you'll find a list of ten items on your profile that you can turn on or off, each to a different group of Facebook users.
'Profile' lets you choose whether to block people from seeing anything beyond the most basic information (name and network) on your profile page, while 'Basic Info' allows viewing of gender, birthday, relationship status, and the like. 'Personal Info' opens the door a little wider -- to your "about me" section, interests and favorites, and so on; 'Status and Links' controls who can see your latest status update. Most of the categories are self-explanatory (just click the question-mark icon if you need help) and can get pretty detailed. But this is also an advantage: If, like Mary, you don't want to advertise where you work, you can turn off that detail here.
Also, click Save Changes at the bottom of any Facebook settings screen, or your settings will not be updated.
What should you change these settings to, then? Facebook offers numerous choices for each category: Everyone, My Networks and Friends, Friends of Friends, Only Friends, and Customize. Everyone is self-explanatory; My Networks and Friends is less inclusive, limiting profile viewing to anyone you're friends with or with whom you share a network; Friends of Friends essentially gives you two degrees of openness instead of one; and Only Friends is exactly how it sounds.
The Customize option gives you complete command over your network settings: You can limit viewing of your profile to certain networks and, in some cases, subsets of that network. Current students, for example, can prohibit faculty or other undergrads from viewing their profile. How much to lock things down is up to you. In Mary's case, making her Profile visible to 'Only Friends' would have prevented an unpleasant surprise visit.

THE STALKER PROBLEM
The disaster Jessica is worried about the creepy messages and Wall posts being left by some guy she doesn't know but whose friend request she accepted. She doesn't want to delete her account, but she does wish to get rid of the stranger and set her profile to be discovered only by those people she allows.
The solution: First, Jessica should add the possible stalker to a Limited Profile list, as outlined earlier.
If you have a hostile stalker, you can remove and/or block them: Go to the person's profile page and then click the Remove from Friends option at the bottom of the left column.
If the person persists in friend requests, you can block the stalker altogether by going to the Privacy page and typing their name in the search box in the 'Block People' region. Standard Facebook-style search results will pop up; just click Block Person next to their name, and they won't find you in a search, or view any part of your profile.
For a stronger level of privacy and security, you can temporarily "go dark" by making your profile virtually invisible. Go to the Privacy settings page and click Search. Set the Search Visibility drop-down selection to Only Friends. This tells Facebook not to show your profile in public searches on the site.
The Search Result Content section lets you choose whether to show photos or lists of friends and links. If you don't want to be contacted at all, remove the check marks by both options.
Finally, you can use the Public Search Listing option to allow or prevent your profile from appearing in major search engine results such as those of Google.

TOO MANY PIECES OF FLAIR
The disaster. Donna has accepted one too many gifts of Star Wars figurines and cutesy buttons -- and now her profile page is stuffed with enough frivolous junk to embarrass a fourth-grader. That page didn't go over well with the hiring manager at the job she was applying for. She heard through the grapevine that she didn't get the gig because he found her page and thought she wasn't serious enough to merit an offer.
The solution: Paring down the digital clutter isn't as tough as cleaning out the garage, but it does take some effort. However, if you allowed, say, a trivial quiz to drop a box into the left column of your Info page, it's relatively easy to get rid of. Just click the pencil icon located in the top-right corner of the box and then select Remove Box.
Nondefault applications that have been added to the main column on your Info page require a little more work: Click the Applications button in the bottom left of the screen, and then click Edit Applications at the bottom of that list. On the page that appears, browse to find the application you'd like to remove. Click Edit Settings, and then click remove next to 'Info Section'. You can also remove unwanted tabs this way, by clicking remove next to 'Tab'.
Next, turn an eye toward locking down what applications -- whether they appear on your page or not -- are permitted to post to your account. On the Privacy Settings page, click News Feed and Wall, and you can start paring down the amount of junk that Facebook use; to automatically populate your Recent Activity. What you choose here is a matter of personal preference (see also our Facebook etiquette tips on page 99), and how spare you want your page to appear. Unchecking boxes on this page means fewer items on your profile. The selections are largely self-explanatory, so tweak at will.
But just removing an application box on your Profile page does not remove the app from your profile completely. To do that, you have to go behind the scenes a little. Click the Applications button at the bottom left of the page, and then click Edit Applications in the menu that pops up. Change the 'Show' drop-down to 'Authorized', and you'll see every application that you have given access to your profile. If you're like me, you'll have dozens and you won't remember most of them.
First, delete anything you no longer use (or want to use) by clicking the X, then Remove at the pop-up. For the apps you wish to keep, you can make them less chatty by clicking Edit Settings. Click Additional Permissions and uncheck Publish recent activity to my wall, and you'll no longer see updates when you play a Facebook game or send a goofy "gift" to your girlfriend.

SHOULDA BEEN WORKING
The disaster Dylan spent almost an hour playing a Flash game on a Web site when he was supposed to be working on a report for the boss. He didn't get caught -- but the game posted his high score to his Facebook profile without his knowledge. The boss saw that score on his Wall, which earned Dylan a lecture about wasting company resources.
The solution: Putting aside whether he should have been playing the game, Dylan would have been better served by turning off the ability for third-party Web sites to post to his profile, a feature known as Facebook Beacon.
To disable this, visit Privacy Settings, then Applications. Click the Settings tab. Scroll down and uncheck Don't allow Beacon websites to post stories to my profile, under the Facebook Beacon header.

THE TELL-TALE HEART
The disaster: Nancy broke up with her boyfriend and changed her relationship status to 'single'. Now a giant red heart is announcing her newfound availability to the world. An item in the right-hand 'Highlights' column announces the fact to all her friends. The trouble is, the thing looks like a singles ad.
The solution: It may not be instantly obvious, but you can delete anything from your Wall. Just hover over the item you want to get rid of, and you'll see a 'Remove' button suddenly appear to the right of said item. Click that button, and the item is gone for good.

SMILE FOR THE CAMERA
The disaster Someone tagged Ben in a photo on Facebook, and he hates the shot, taken at a party -- his eyes are closed, and he's clearly inebriated. The solution: While you can't delete someone else's photograph (try asking nicely), it's easy to remove a tag of yourself from any picture, which will remove it from Facebook's 'View Photos of Me' pages. To do so, just find the offending picture and click remove tag next to your name in the caption. Once the tag is removed, you won't be able to be retagged on that particular photo.

YOU'RE NOT AN ADVERTISEMENT
The disaster: Bruno was horrified to discover that his name was attached to an ad that was spammed to his friends without his permission. What gives?
The solution: "Social ads" are Face-book's term for a practice that puts your name on an ad for a product and then forwards it to your friends, without your explicit permission. As you've nothing but a headache to gain by allowing this, turn it off. Go to the Face-book Privacy Page and click News Feed and Wall, and then select the Social Ads tab. Change the selection to No one.

SPAM CENTRAL
The disaster: Kris woke up one morning to discover that her Facebook friends had been spammed with a message, "Check out mygener.at." She didn't send the message, and is reasonably worried that her account was hacked.
Indeed, Facebook is becoming a popular target for scammers, phishers, and spammers. The method typically used involves a phishing site (often with '.at' in the URL) that looks just like Face-book and thereby tricks you into giving up your password and user name. The site then takes control of your account and begins spamming your contacts with the phishing site's URL in the hopes of obtaining even more log-ins.
The solution: Conventional security software won't help much with attacks like this -- though antiphishing add -- ons can help to some extent-so using common sense is our best advice. Keep your password private, and make sure the site you're visiting really is Face-book and not a malicious knock-off. Twitter Disasters
As a social networking tool, Twitter is even more open than Facebook -- which is all the more reason to employ what safeguards you can on its network.

TWITTER NEVER FORGETS
The disaster: Nelson knows everyone who follows his Twitter feed and didn't think much about trashing a coworker on the service. Months later, long after he'd forgotten about it, the coworker began to follow his tweets -- and, with a little digging, found Nelson's insult, creating an awkward office environment.
The solution: Unlike Facebook, Twitter has no mechanism for approving who follows you on the service, and anyone can read your full tweeting history. That is, unless you protect your updates: Click Settings and check the Protect my updates box. Your tweets now won't be visible to anyone not approved as a follower. However, anything you've already sent out will stick around, especially on third-party Twitter interfaces.

LOCKING OUT THE TWITTER TWITS
The disaster: Vicky regularly tweets (nastily) about a former friend, and naturally doesn't want that person to follow her on Twitter. How does she keep that person out before it becomes an issue?
The solution: First, your account must be marked as 'Protected', as described in the preceding item. Then, assuming you know the person's user name, simply block that user on Twitter. This option is on the profile page, in the 'Actions' section. It removes you from their Following list and prevents your updates from showing up on their page and from adding you to their Following list again. But your current friends can still copy and paste your tweets, or save them through screen captures.
The real lesson: It's probably best not to bash anybody on Twitter if you're afraid they'll find out about it.

LINKING TWITTER WITH FACEBOOK CAN BE TROUBLE
The disaster: Dan thought he was being a good Web citizen and killing two birds with one stone by linking his Twitter account to his Facebook profile (visit apps.facebook.com/twitter to set it up for yourself -- but finish reading this item first). The idea is sound enough: Update your Twitter status, and your Facebook status updates along with it, automatically. However, a Facebook connection isn't always a good idea. If you're live-tweeting, say, a sports event or a conference, you might post 20 tweets or more in an hour. That may fly on the rapid-fire Twitter, but on Face-book it's over the line since it clogs up your friends' news feeds.
The solution: In Dan's case, a Twitter/Facebook link may not be appropriate, and he may be better off simply unlinking the two networks.
The best way to unlink is to browse to Facebook, click the Applications button on the bottom-left corner, and then select Applications. Find Twitter on this page and click the X to delete the app from your Facebook profile. (If you use a third-party application like Tweet-Deck to access Twitter, you'll have to unlink your profile through that app.)

BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU LINK TO
The disaster: In one of his daily tweets, David linked to an article expressing a strong view on a controversial issue. Before he knew it, David was being bombarded with tweets rebutting the article. David found many of these statements to be factually lacking, but still felt compelled to counter them in tweets of his own. Hours passed. Soon the afternoon was lost, and David was left frustrated by the challenge of making cogent arguments in 140 characters or less (Twitter's limit).
The solution: David didn't want to 'Protect' his tweets because he believed that the openness and public nature of the service are central to the Twitter concept. David should have considered that this openness means people he knows nothing about can see his tweets and the things he links to.
Second, when it became clear that David had become involved in a protracted debate with another Twitter user who wasn't making much sense, he should have blocked that user by going to the person's profile and clicking Block next to the person's user name. Problem solved. Afternoon saved.

THE STORY OF 'CISCO FATTY'
The disaster: Unlike the hypothetical examples in this story, this one is true (see ciscofatty.com). Connor was offered a job at Cisco, the big networking company. While weighing her options, she idly tweeted to her followers that she now had to decide whether the "fatty paycheck" she'd draw from Cisco would justify her "hating the work."
Problem is, a Cisco employee saw the tweet and called her out on it, prompting an outpouring of scorn from the Twitter community, as well as a lot of embarrassment for poor Connor.
The solution: Connor obviously should have protected her Twitter account via the 'Protect my updates' check box, as described on page 102.
But here's the larger lesson: Many people keep tabs on Twitter using filtered keywords, especially company names -- and the use of the term "Cisco" in her tweet was what killed Connor's job prospects. A better approach would have been to leave the company anonymous, or -- better yet -- not to tweet about her job offer at all.
ADDED MATERIAL
BY CHRISTOPHER NULL ILLUSTRATIONS BY MICK WIGGINS
'LIMITED PROFILE' IS a default group for less-wanted contacts, but you'll still need to specify what rights this group should have.
THE ENTRY TO all Facebook privacy settings is on this page. But thoroughly exploring all four of its subpages can take hours. (We'll point you to some of the most important settings.)
THE PROFILE SETTINGS under Privacy allow you to control which Facebook users can see your profile and which ones cannot.
WALL POSTS can be endlessly tweaked. If you blow through significant others, consider unchecking 'Change relationship status'.
AVOID UNWANTED POSTINGS by clicking 'Edit Settings' to control what third-party apps can autopost to your profile; as a stronger measure, clicking the X deletes them altogether.
SO-CALLED SOCIAL ADS are one of Facebook's more annoying features. Choosing 'No one' next to 'Appearance in Social Ads' can put a halt to this kind of social-network spamming
ON TWITTER, CHECK the 'Protect my updates' box to prevent your future tweets from being seen by anyone not approved as a follower. But old tweets will still be accessible.

THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO FACEBOOK ETIQUETTE
WHAT'S OKAY ON Facebook? On sites such as MySpace, anything goes, but Facebook is a little more refined in its etiquette rules. Not a lot more refined, mind you, but a little. Keep these tips in mind whether you're just making your first friend or you're now topping 1000.
* Who should you friend? Some people have an all-inclusive approach to Facebook and will accept anyone; some want only real-world contacts in their friend list. The right approach is a personal choice. Just bear in mind that the bigger your friend net is, the more application, event, chat-session, and cause invitations you'll be inundated with -- and that can lead to some uncomfortable moments and the occasional friend purge.
* Easy on the updates As with Twitter, oversharing can be a problem. Every meal, every TV show watched, and every weather condition need not be the subject of a status update. Ask yourself if anyone will care about your comment before you start typing.
* 'Now, choose 12 friends...' It's fine if you want to take a "Which serial killer are you?" quiz. But these quizzes exist to get an ever-increasing number of people to try them. At the end of each quiz you'll almost always be asked to invite additional people to take the quiz, but there's no need for that unless you think they'll really enjoy it. Look for a 'Skip this step' or 'continue to result' button, which should be somewhere on the page in tiny type; click it, and you won't send the quiz to anyone. On the following screen, the 'Skip' button will further keep the quiz from showing up on your Wall or sharing itself on friends' Walls.
* Limit Facebook Chat An open Facebook window doesn't mean someone is automatically available for a chat session. Facebook Chat is like any other instant messaging platform -- use it appropriately and recognize that your friends may be too busy to respond immediately, especially during business hours.
* Don't 'poke' people At least not if you're over the age of 16.

THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO TWITTER ETIQUETTE
BECAUSE IT'S JUST a messaging platform, Twitter is far less complex than Facebook, but misuse and abuse seem just as common. Some of our favorite Twitter etiquette rules follow.
* Reconsider the running commentary Live-tweeting sporting events or conference speeches may seem like a public service, but who's listening? If you commonly use Twitter as a once-a-week status update, but then abruptly let fly with 80 tweets in a day, you'll aggravate followers who aren't expecting their account to be so overtaken. Consider a blog post instead, or offer a single succinct observation each hour.
* Understand @ replies Twitter's main failing is its inability to organize conversations, unlike Facebook, and overuse of @ confuses followers. Use an @ reply only when you're adding to a conversation publicly. "@bob -- Yeah I know" is a waste of everyone's time. Instead, use a "D" (direct) message (type a D where the @ would normally be) -- only the person you're responding to can see it.
* Go easy on acronyms Unless you're really crunched for space, there's no need for abbrevo-speak if your phone has a full QWERTY keyboard. (Fitting tweets into a single message is also good etiquette.) No matter what, spelling still counts on Twitter.
* Think about the venue As one reporter learned, it's not okay to tweet a funeral. Tweeting any sacred ceremony (wedding, bris, court proceedings) is generally a no-no. If you're unsure whether a tweet or two would be all right, ask the event's host. Be prepared to receive a funny look in response, though.
* Learn the lingo Check out our "Twitter Commands Reference Guide" on page 103.

SETTING FACEBOOK'S E-MAIL PERMISSIONS
FACEBOOK TREATS WHAT it slaps up on your Wall and what it e-mails you about separately, so you'll have to visit a different section to change what the network sends you via e-mail. You'll find these settings by clicking Settings (top-right corner) then the Notifications tab. Get ready to click, again and again: The page has more than 50 different e-mail settings for the main Facebook application alone, plus a setting for each of your add-on applications. Turn as many to 'Off' as you care to.

GET A VANITY FACEBOOK URL
YOU WOULDN'T HOST your personal Web site on a Tripod account with a randomly generated URL. So why should you settle for a Facebook page whose URL is indicated by nothing but a numerical ID? Memorable Web Address (apps.facebook.com/webaddress/) gives you a vanity URL that redirects to your Facebook profile (or any page or group); for example, 'http://profile.to/null' instead of 'http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=718386140'. If you would like to put your Facebook link on your business card or e-mail signature, this is a convenient way to deuglify things considerably. (Of course, you can also use your favorite URL-shortening service to do a similar job, too.)

TWITTER COMMANDS REFERENCE GUIDE
HERE'S A GUIDE on how to use and understand Twitter's special commands. username The basic building block of conversations, for public replies to a tweet by the user noted after the @ sign.
* Dusername For a "Direct message" to only the user in question. "DM" also works.
* RT @username For "Re-Tweet," or a tweet you want to rebroadcast. Prefaced with the original twitterer's user name.
The following commands ask Twitter for information or tell it how to behave:
* ON username or OFF username Turns mobile phone notifications on or off for a single user. STOP and QUIT will cut off all Twitter SMS messages for all users. Only cell phone notifications are affected.
* FOLLOW username and LEAVE username To see -- or stop seeing -- the tweets of a user. Twitter displays a drop-down message saying it has carried out your command. However, to truly take them off your list, go to their Twitter profile and click Remove next to 'You follow username'.
* WHOIS username Pops up a brief amount of information about the user.
* GET username retrieves a particular user's most recent tweet.
* STATS Tells you how many followers you have and how many are following you.

Source: PC World, August 2009, Vol. 27 Issue 8, p97, 7p
Item: 504310587"