For my age, I think I have a relatively small online footprint. Every single one of social media accounts are private. I almost never post anything on my accounts, and when I do, I post a single photo on instagram (maybe 1 every 9ish months). The information on all my accounts is very basic, just stating my name, the high school I went to and my age. I haven't updated or changed any of the information since I created the accounts roughly 5 years ago.
I have an instagram account, a snapchat, a Tik-tok, and a facebook. I use them all but they are all private and I didn’t link any of them together. The information a visitor could glean about me, even indirectly, by visiting my pages on social media is very limited to the information in my bio. They would also be able to see my face in my profile pictures, but since all my accounts are private, and only my friends can see photos I'm tagged in on FB they wouldn’t get much else.
Private information I have voluntarily given out are mostly just to my accounts as a secondary form of authentication or to get notification alerting me of any activity on my account (in case I get hacked or somebody logs-in at a new location). This private information is really only my phone number, or extra email account (that I use for this exact purpose) or when I have accounts with companies that make me sign up to get a big discount.
Back in high school when I made all my accounts, my dad was very reluctant to let me create one without making everything private. Back then, I went along with it because I knew it was the only way I would be able to have them. Looking back on that now, I am so happy he drilled that into my brain. Because of him, every time I make a new account, or a company asks for my information, I think twice about any potential consequence or repercussions I could experience from it. All my friends always ask me why I never post or update my accounts. To them, this is such a strange idea because most of them can't go a couple hours without posting something. But for me, before I post anything on social media, I always think about two things my dad said to me. 1- “am I going to be okay if my parents, children, employer, or employees see this someday? And 2- “would I be ok if this turned up in a newspaper for everyone to see?” If I have any doubt, I don't post it. I even apply those two questions to any texts I send.
Having regrets about releasing private information is definitely a dangerous road, and can lead to some pretty debilitating mental health problems. I know that personal information is one of my most valued assets. Once I release it to the public, it is out there forever and I can never get it back. I can confidently say that I don’t regret anything about my online footprint. I have always been careful and I continue to be careful.
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/05/is-facebook-making-us-lonely/308930/
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