Social media sites make sharing with friends and family anywhere in the world simple and fun. But maintaining the right image while protecting your privacy in an online domain can be problematic.
Reports have raised concern over potential employers asking for job applicants' passwords for social media sites. Michael Sprague - co-founder of Scrambls, a posting encryption developer - says that users are becoming increasingly uncomfortable. In May, a complaint lodged with the Maryland branch of the American Civil Liberties Union resulted in the first bill in the US prohibiting employers from requiring or requesting user names or passwords as a condition of employment.
Sprague warns users that every e-mail, comment and tweet is a digital footprint. 'Data mining is so powerful. Schools and employers might make decisions based on the information you've posted.'
Potential employers commonly perform web searches on candidates. LinkedIn (linkedin.com) is a professional networking site, which employers can use. Twitter links can be enabled on profiles to enter professional and personal Twitter accounts. Zaheer Nooruddin, a digital strategist at communications firm Burson-Marsteller, Asia-Pacific, suggests regularly googling yourself 'to see how the rest of the world sees you'. He also recommends reading user reviews of sites you might join.
Appearance is everything, so Sprague warns against writing things you wouldn't want a stranger reading over your shoulder. 'It's best to imagine you're online alone on Facebook, not one of 900 million.'
Nooruddin reminds that posts are accessible by everyone, forever. 'Consider context. Posts travel quickly between social networks. Participate deliberately and delete profiles you don't actively maintain.'