1 of 4

Write now Article Tools

Page 2 of 2

can be wonderful, but none of these sites are secure. Be aware of how much identifying information you are sharing. Obviously you want to use your real name on Facebook, or there would be no point to joining. Just be careful about how much you post to your public profile. In chatrooms, use a nickname. And if you blog, be careful not to reveal too much about yourself.

Protecting your personal information on the internet is part of the larger topic of internet security. With enough information gathered from around the web it's possible someone could know entirely too much about you.

Obviously, the larger an online presence you have, the more information about you there is going to be online. An online presence is not necessarily a bad thing, as it can open a whole world of opportunities. And when you create your own presence you gain some control over what is there.

It's also a good idea to periodically check on that information. Search for your name in several different search engines (Google, Yahoo, MSN, Ask.com) and free phone/people directories (switchboard.com, whitepages.com, zabasearch.com). See what comes up. Although it is nearly impossible to remove most of what is already posted (one exception is that Google allows you to remove your phone number from its database), knowing about it lets you evaluate your own personal vulnerability online. This is YOUR personal information. Protect it.

Learn more about this author, Melissa J Luther.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

• << previous page
• 1
• 2

Add your voice

Know something about How can we keep our personal information off the Internet??
We want to hear your view. Write now!