Security on Facebook
The following information is
available through the Facebook Help Centre and is meant to be used to
minimize unwanted contact and reduce abusive behaviour on Facebook.
There is no guaranteed
method of securing personal information on social networking sites such
as Facebook, regardless of the privacy settings you choose to utilize.
Anyone using a social
networking site (i.e., Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIn, etc.) is
strongly encouraged to limit the information they choose to share and to
monitor their security settings on a regular basis. It is
important to remember that information posted online may be accessible
through Google, or other search engines, even if it seems secure.
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How do I report
cyberbullying?
We want Facebook to remain an
environment where people can connect and share comfortably.
Cyberbullying is defined as the use of any new technology to harass or
intimidate someone and is considered to be abusive behavior from minor
to minor, while cyberharassment typically involves adults. There are
steps you can take to prevent this kind of behavior if it occurs.
Accept Friend Requests Safely
In order to prevent harassment from strangers, be careful to accept
friend requests only from people you know in real life. Also, remember
to report any messages or profiles that look suspicious. Facebook is
based on a real-name culture, and fake profiles are regularly disabled
when they're reported to us. Please also keep in mind that only
confirmed friends can post to your Wall or contact you via Facebook
Chat, so if you're worried that someone will make inappropriate posts or
send offensive messages, just ignore that person's friend request.
Use the "Block" Feature to Stop Abusive Behavior
A block prevents specific people from viewing your profile. When you
block people, any ties you currently have with them will be broken, and
these people won't be able to contact you through Facebook. If you
receive inappropriate or abusive communication, you can block the person
by listing his or her name in the "Block People" box at the bottom of
your Privacy Settings page. You can visit this page at any time by
hovering your mouse over the "Settings" link at the top of any Facebook
page and selecting the "Privacy Settings" option from the drop-down menu
that appears.
Click here
for more information about blocking.
Report Abusive Behavior Directly to Facebook
The most efficient way to report abuse is to do it in the same place it
occurs on Facebook. For example, if you receive a harassing message in
your Inbox, you can report the message by clicking on the "Report" link
next to the sender's name as you are reading the message. If you receive
a harassing message from a person who is a Facebook friend of yours, you
should remove the person as a friend and report the message. Reporting
the message as harassing will automatically add this person to your
Block list. You can also use the "Report/Block person" link that appears
at the bottom of the abusive user's profile. If you learn that someone
is continuing to make abusive comments about you even after you've
blocked them, you can ask a friend to report that person on your behalf.
Reports are confidential and the user being reported does not know that
they have been reported. After a report is submitted, we will
investigate the issue and make a determination as to whether or not the
content should remain on the site based on our Terms of Use. A Facebook
administrator looks into each report thoroughly in order to decide the
appropriate course of action.
Restrict Privacy Settings
To restrict the amount of information that potential bullies may have
access to, customize your privacy settings so that certain people can't
access information like your Wall, photos, or profile. You can also
change your privacy settings if you are uncomfortable being found in
searches or having your profile viewed publicly. Privacy on Facebook is
controlled primarily from the Privacy Settings page. You can visit this
page at any time by hovering your mouse over the "Settings" link at the
top of any page of Facebook and selecting the "Privacy Settings" option
from the drop-down menu that appears.
Respond to Abusers in the Right Way
Cyberbullies often seek a reaction from the people they harass. When
they fail to get one, they often give up gradually. Rather than
responding to a bully via Inbox, a Wall post, or Facebook Chat, you can
delete offensive posts from your Wall or messages from your Inbox and
then use the "Block" or "Report" functions to resolve the issue safely.
To delete an offensive Wall post, hover over the post in question, click
the "Remove" button that appears, and select "Delete" in the dialogue
box. To delete a message from Inbox, simply click the "Delete" button at
the top of the message. Only confirmed friends can post to your Wall or
send you a message through Chat. If you are receiving posts and Chat
messages you don't like, you should consider removing the sender from
your friends list.
These tips have been
reviewed by stopcyberbullying.org and connectsafely.org, two independent
organizations that provide tools, resources, and educational materials
on internet safety including cyberbullying and cyberharassment.
Facebook is a member of the Stop Cyberbullying Coalition, a movement to
understand, prevent, and address cyberbullying affiliated with
stopcyberbullying.org.
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