How to update your Facebook privacy settings

No one should be giving Facebook free access to their data. We still haven’t forgotten about the Cambridge Audio Analytica scandal, which made us truly realize just how much private information Facebook has eyes on. So, how can you protect your data? You can always leave the social network altogether. A less drastic solution is to change your Facebook privacy settings. Here are a few ways to do just that.

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How to deactivate your Facebook account

One way to step away from Facebook eyes is to deactivate your account. This removes your profile from Facebook but keeps all of your information on the company’s servers. And it takes only a few clicks to reactivate your account down the line if you decide to return.

To be clear, your information is not publicly visible while your profile is deactivated, no matter which apps you previously gave access to your profile. However, your data still exists, which is not as secure as deleting your account.

Read more: How to delete your Facebook account

To deactivate your Facebook account:

• Click on the arrow-down button and head to Settings & Privacy > Settings > Your Facebook information > Deactivation and deletion.
• Click View, followed by Deactivate account.
• Finally, hit Continue to Account Deactivation. You’ll be prompted to enter your password, and then you’ll see a page where Facebook explains what will happen if you deactivate.
• At the bottom of that page is the Deactivate button. Hit that, and your profile will be instantly removed from Facebook.

To reactivate, all you need to do is log in again. You’ll run through a series of prompts to get your profile back up, but everything will be just the way it was before you left: all your photos, status updates, and apps will be back online.

How to delete your Facebook account

Facebook doesn’t want you to delete your account. In fact, it used to make you jump through many hoops to get to this option. This isn’t the case anymore. Deleting your Facebook profile is simple, but you should take a couple of steps before doing so.

The first thing you want to do is back up your data. Facebook lets you download a .zip file with your photos and personal details, so deleting your profile doesn’t erase memories.

• Look for the arrow-down button in the top-right corner of Facebook. Go to Settings & Privacy > Settings > Your Facebook information.
• Under Download your information, select View.
• Ensure you’ve selected All time in the date range menu and High in the media quality menu.
• All that’s left is to click the Create File button and wait. Depending on how much media you have uploaded to the social network over the years, this might take a while. Facebook will notify you when your .zip file is ready to download.

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• Once your data is safely saved to your PC, return to the Your Facebook information section and click View next to Deactivation and deletion.
• You will be taken to a page that provides you with the option to deactivate or delete your profile. If you are dead set on leaving Facebook, select Delete account and click the blue Continue to Account Deletion button. Just like deactivating, you will be prompted to re-enter your password.

Before you proceed, you should remember that Messenger no longer works without a Facebook account. Your profile on that app will be deleted, too, along with all of your messages. If you don’t mind that and you’ve already downloaded your data, all that’s left is to click the Delete account button, and you’re off of Facebook forever.

We should note that Facebook collects information on non-users too. If you want to ensure your data is safe, your best bet is to use a privacy-oriented browser that blocks third-party cookies, including social cookies. We recommend using Firefox with its Facebook Container add-on.

How to update your Facebook privacy settings

What if you don’t want to deactivate or delete your Facebook account? Tightening up your Facebook privacy settings is the next best step you can take. These settings used to be hidden a bit better, but lately, Facebook has made it very simple to manage your privacy. Keep in mind that these settings are different than Facebook post privacy settings, which control who can see your posted content, and photo privacy settings, which control who can see your uploaded and tagged photos.

• Go to Facebook.com and log into your account.
• Click on the arrow down button on the top-right corner of the screen.
• Select Settings & Privacy.
• Head into Settings.
• Go to Privacy.
• From here, go option by option and edit how you see fit.

Facebook also has a neat Privacy Checkup feature, making it easier to edit your settings, with cool graphics and all. You can also change your active status on Facebook in the “settings” window, which controls whether or not your friends can see when you are online.

How to access Facebook Privacy Checkup

• Go to Facebook.com and log into your account.
• Click on the arrow down button on the top-right corner of the screen.
• Select Settings & Privacy.
• Hit Privacy Checkup.
• Go setting by setting and adjust options to your preference.

How to check your off-Facebook activity

Many apps and websites interact with Facebook and send data about your activity. This could include opening an app, making a purchase or a donation, and much more. This activity is personally identifiable to Facebook because it’s tied to your profile. If you want to know more about it and disconnect the activity from your account, check out our detailed guide here.

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How to opt-out of Facebook facial recognition

This feature has been around for years, but many users only found out about it recently, thanks to a class-action lawsuit against Facebook. The social network allegedly only uses facial recognition to improve photo tagging suggestions. Here is how to opt-out of it altogether.

• On your desktop browser, open Facebook.com and log in.
• Hit the arrow-down button in the top-right corner and select Settings & Privacy.
• Go into Settings and select Face Recognition.
• Next to Face Recognition, hit Edit.
• Select No in the drop-down menu.

How to turn off Facebook location history

If you don’t want to share your location with Facebook for things like checking in, one of the easiest things you can do is deny permission on your Android phone. However, if you used the app on previous versions when this option was unavailable, you can toggle it off and delete existing location data from Facebook.

• On your desktop browser, open Facebook.com and log in.
• Hit the arrow-down button in the top-right corner and select Settings & Privacy.
• Go into Settings and select Location.
• Next to Location History, hit the Edit button.
• Select Off in the drop-down menu.

How to change Facebook ad preferences

Although you can’t guess by its name, this is one of the most basic Facebook privacy settings sections you need to be aware of. You can view your interests — usually pages you’ve liked or interacted with, a list of advertisers who have uploaded your information and advertised to you, and more. There are plenty of necessary settings to change here too.

• On your desktop browser, open Facebook.com and log in.
• Hit the arrow-down button in the top-right corner and select Settings & Privacy.
• Go into Settings and select Ads.
• Now you can go section by section and adjust your preferences.

Also read: The best VPN services for Android devices

How to manage apps and websites on Facebook

If you use a Facebook login or you’ve played some games on the social media network, this is yet another section you need to check out.

• On your desktop browser, open Facebook.com and log in.
• Hit the arrow-down button in the top-right corner and select Settings & Privacy.
• Go into Settings and select Apps and Websites.
• Look through the list of linked services. Remove whichever you no longer want to be connected to your account.

How to manage contact uploads on Facebook

This is an option you can only find on your smartphone. Facebook can continuously upload your contacts to suggest new friends to you. We are not sure if this is an option enabled by default, but if you want to make sure it is disabled, you can go to Settings & Privacy > Settings > Media and contacts > Continuous contacts upload to check. Toggle it off if it’s on.

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