Facebook Launches ‘Guide To Facebook Security,’ Helps You Secure Your Account

Over the last few months, Facebook has launched several initiatives and features to help you keep your account and data secure. Back in May, the company revealed it was switching over to the secure HTTPS protocol and announced details of its login approvals feature.

Facebook has also teamed up with Web of Trust to help protect you from scam websites and recently added its social reporting tool to its mobile website. In addition, the company has launched a bug bounty program that rewards security researchers for finding flaws in the social network’s security systems.

To help you understand the social network’s security features and how to protect your account, a Guide To Facebook Security has been launched. The guide, which you can download from Facebook, is 14 pages long and offers all kinds of tips on how to protect your account, including how to spot and avoid scam apps and clickjacking.

The introduction to the guide reads as follows:

If there was any doubt on the incredible power of social networking, consider the more than one billion pieces of content shared each day with over half a billion users. Facebook connects over 500 million people in over 210 countries—indeed, its global population exceeds the size of most European countries, and counts among its members citizens from every single continent in the world.

People on Facebook have great power—they can Friend, Chat, share Status Updates, post Comments, share Links, tag Photos, post Videos, join Groups, create Pages, design Polls, and play together using Applications. They use Facebook to promote causes, interests, and themselves! Facebook allows the world to be more open and connected by giving its users the tools to interact and share in any conceivable way. And, to paraphrase the superhero, with great power comes great responsibility. Just as a city paints sidewalks, and pedestrians look both ways before crossing the street, security on Facebook is a responsibility shared between Facebook and the people who use its platform.

This guide is all about empowering you to Own Your Space—to understand what Facebook is doing to make the site safe and secure and to take the actions that are needed in this new digital world to protect yourself and your account.

While the focus of this guide is on Facebook, the lessons here apply to every site you visit online. Throughout the guide, we will highlight the unique tools that Facebook provides so that you can harness your power by protecting your account, using advanced security settings, recovering a hacked Facebook account, and stopping imposters.

Beyond this, we want you to adopt the mantra: Stop. Think. Connect. Facebook has a ton to offer people, and with a little bit of common sense you can stay safe and secure. We hope you find this guide useful. Please join the conversation by visiting the Facebook Security Page at www.facebook.com/security

The guide includes information on how to recover your Facebook account if it has been hacked and how to use additional security features — such as one-time passwords and secure browsing — to make it more difficult for hackers and scammers to take over your account.

The guide was written by 3 experienced security authors — Linda McCarthy, Keith Watson and Denise Weldon-Siviy — and is well worth taking the time to read through as it offers some important tips on protecting your account and data while using Facebook.

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One Response to Facebook Launches ‘Guide To Facebook Security,’ Helps You Secure Your Account

  1. Anonymous says:

    With so many people using Facebook it’s a great idea for them to have a security guide. I still use Facebook like most people, but not as often any more.  I tend to use tagged and MyInkedSpace more.