Ways to Keep Your Private Finances Out of Social Networking

Facebook, Twitter, Linked-In and other Internet communities are exploding in popularity. Still, a careful user may shudder at how much private information may be transmitted beyond her own circle of friends.

I've been surprised to find my own photos or stories shared more widely than I expected.

How can you protect your pocketbook and personal finances while networking online? Try these common-sense ways to keep confidential information safe from those who might use such data for harm.

Consider using an alternate name for online use.

Start safe by setting up your social networking profiles under a moniker that does not match your legal name. Use a nickname, or add a creative tag to your name. At least, leave out that middle name or initial.

Many married women include their maiden names, perhaps hoping to be found by old friends. However, this tactic reveals plenty of information for would-be identity thieves. Real friends can find you, even if you use a nickname.

Never post your home contact information online.

Residential addresses and land line numbers do not belong in social networking. Cell phones are a stretch. Give your contact information in private messages or in person, but not in open forums.

Social networking sites like Facebook allow users to customize privacy settings. Keep this data confidential, and never post such details on friends' public pages.

Don't sign up for family links.

Although it may seem like fun, public posting of your family tree is a dangerous practice. How easily can unsavory characters figure out your mother's maiden name and perhaps gain access your bank accounts?

Keep your birth year to yourself.

This is a no-brainer for most women. Who wants to share her real age, anyway?

Surprisingly, many ladies post this on their social networking profile pages. Others publish photos or reports of milestone birthdays or school alumni reunions. Why make it easy for crooks to hunt for your birth records, decode your garage door or guess part of your Social Security number?

Skip online quizzes.

Silly social networking surveys are privacy perils. Consider how much confidential information you offer by answering seemingly innocent questions about your tastes, hobbies, hometown, birth order, educational background, recreational activities and vehicle model.

Quizzes help advertisers tailor their pitches, but they can also offer confidential details to potentially scary strangers. What's your password? Are you unwittingly sharing it by revealing your birthplace, pet's name or favorite food?

Financial windfalls don't belong online.

Did you win the lottery, sell a motorboat or receive a dividend? Are you waiting for a whopping tax refund? Has your boss offered you a huge pay raise?

Resist the temptation to gush about your good fortune online. Unscrupulous folks may be reading. And never exaggerate your earnings in public forums, unless you want to invite an audit.

Watch what you post about your personal health.

Online friends may be supportive when you are injured or ill. At the same time, insurance companies may be watchful for pre-existing conditions. Prospective employers could be looking for answers to medical questions they're not allowed to ask. A job interviewer told my daughter they had looked at her profile page. This is common practice.

Who's on your friends list? Who are their friends?

Keep your vacation plans a secret until afterward.

Planning a Caribbean cruise or ski trip? Don't brag about it beforehand. Save the news till you return, so burglars won't know when you are away.

Be careful posting photos online.

We've all cringed at TV news stories revealing how cell phone photo postings may reveal specific locations through geotagging. Edit cell phone photos, and rename them to remove identifying data.

Before publishing photos, take a closer look. Do your images include a license plate, mailbox, street sign, school emblem or other locatable data? Are you willing to share that with cyberspace? Even if your photo sharing settings aim at maximum privacy, anyone with access to your photos can save them for reposting publicly.

Finally, be sure to adjust account settings on sites like Facebook, limiting access to photos in which you are tagged. That gives you the chance to review these images and post them yourself, if you wish.

Protect your personal information and your pocketbook online. Keep your friends close and your confidential data even closer.

More from this contributor:

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The Family Staycation: Saving Money and Sanity in a Struggling Economy

Personal Finance: 7 Simple Steps for Saving $7,000 a Year and More

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