Twitter Tips For Online Safety

Twitter safety is important for everyone, from the youngest user to the oldest user. It doesn’t matter if you use Twitter for business or just as a personal account – you can never be too safe when it comes to using social networks.

It is a good idea to learn basic Twitter safety in order to protect yourself from the threats that are out there. Here are eight helpful Twitter safety tips that we think everyone can benefit from.

Change your password occasionally. Hackers have the technology to figure out your password so you should change it on a regular basis. That way, even if someone does hack your account, they will not have access for very long. If you notice any suspicious activity on your account, change it immediately.

Don’t publish your private information. Basic Twitter safety means keeping prying eyes away from your personal information. There is an option in settings to tweet your location, which will publicize your hometown or where you are when you tweet. Unless you have a specific reason why you want this setting turned on, just skip the option. If you already have it active and are having second thoughts about using it, you can have your location information deleted.

Keep spammers and bots from following you. With Twitter tools like TwerpScan you can easily sort out which followers are genuine and which ones are not.

Be careful about clicking short URLs on tweets or direct messages. Since it is unclear what website you are truly being led to, you should think twice about clicking a link posted by someone you don’t know. Your computer could become infected or you may be taken to a phishing website seeking your personal information.

Keep your personal accounts private. Twitter is a place where people can meet and connect with others of a like mind, however that does not mean that you have to allow everyone to follow your personal account. Within your settings, you have the option to allow only users that you have approved to follow you.

Report impersonation. Someone else can cause serious damage to your reputation if they are able to create an account in your name. If you find out that you are being impersonated, be sure that the page was not created under Twitter’s policy, which allows impersonation for commentary, fan pages, or parody. If there was a malicious intent, you can contact Twitter directly to have the account closed.

Report spam on @replies or direct messages. You can block users who are contacting you unsolicited and truly unwanted. To report the spammer to Twitter, visit their profile and select “Report @username for spam” under the dropdown menu.

Use Twitter tools with caution. Most helpful and legitimate Twitter tools will use Twitter oAuth, which is a protective protocol that allows applications to connect with your account without needing you to enter your username and password.

Use these Twitter safety tips to protect yourself and your loved ones as you all enjoy the Twittersphere.