How private is your Facebook profile?

In the age of social media, separating your personal and professional lives is more important than ever. One of the first things potential employers will do is look at your online profiles, and if they find things they don’t like, that could be it for your job prospects. It is therefore crucial that you edit your social media profiles accordingly.

Here is what you need to look at on Facebook:

1. Check your privacy settings: Protect the content you publish by ensuring that when you press publish, the visibility is set to ‘Friends’. This way, only your contacts can view the intricate details of your profile, such as tagged photos to relationship status. Your future boss does not need to know that your love life is “complicated”!

2. Make your contact information private: Ensure that your email address, phone number and other contact information can only be seen by your friends or network.

3. Profile/cover photos: Try and use a profile photo and cover photo that represent you in the best light possible. This could be within a cultural environment or a setting of interest. An image from your friend’s hen’s night would not necessarily give the best impression to a potential employer.

4. Delete inappropriate photos: It would be advised that you remove any tags on photos that you do not like. A tag puts your name to a face and the photo can be seen by your friend’s contacts – some of which you may not know.

5. Delete inappropriate posts: Take time in deleting any inappropriate posts on both your timeline and also timelines of your friends. Your friends may not have the same privacy settings as you so old posts can be tracked.

Overall, it’s worth remaining aware of the information you put online at all times and being wary that employers may use the Internet to gather more information on you and your background.
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Author David Morel Tiger Recruitment Team