Facebook and Twitter to most of us are the new tools we should be embracing to market our businesses – but at what cost? Here is a guide to some important principles in safely using social media from Tony Baulch at East Grinstead's Ashdown Solutions.
- Set the rules - Make sure your business has an acceptable use policy and that it’s followed
- Use secure passwords - What’s behind a password? Your life! Make it really secure - use at least 8 characters, more is better, and mix in upper and lower case, numbers and symbols.
- Check default settings - Social media sites have large numbers of connected users. Make sure you check each site’s default settings so you minimise the amount of information you provide.
- Be picture prudent - Be careful what pictures you show and try to avoid adding compromising or embarrassing images that might harm you, your organisation or your customers.
- Beware of Big Brother - Using social media sites as a diary is OK if you want family, friends (and enemies), your boss and anyone else to know everything about you.
- Secure your computers - Your life is valuable, so is your organisation! Hackers want you and your data. Stay out of harm’s way – only use computers with up-to-date security software and effective firewalls.
- Think before you click - Never click on links just because you know the sender – some malware takes control of a user’s account and then automatically sends infected messages to all the user’s contacts in an attempt to infect them. If the email looks dodgy it probably is.
- Stranger danger - Be wary of spammers trying to get your details by sending unsolicited invitations. If you don't know the person, the best thing to do is to ignore the request.
For more information, or support when you most need it, give Tony a call on 01342 318022. A local expert for local businesses.