Tag: privacy

So, last night I was chatting it up with some friends on Facebook, when this guy I hesitantly added as a friend a while back showed up and started harrassing me with poorly-spelled, kind of creepy gibberish. Now, I'm all about befriending the freaks and creeps, but sometimes it gets a little too real, you know?

So, I got to thinking this morning. I thought about how I am 'friends' with and visit the pages of band or horror-industry celebrity types.  I'm generally very careful about how I interact with them, respecting their space and making sure not to post completely stupid crap on their walls. 

And it annoys the heck out of me to see 'fans' posting FarmVille requests, Mafia garbage, and 'Who will [insert celebrity name] kiss today?" survey app BS on famous folks' walls. I think to myself, "Doesn't that bother them?" Because, if it was me, I'd block all app requests and go so far as to block folks who got creepy stalkerish on me, like the Chainsaw Guy.

It then occured to me...maybe folks don't know how?

So, here's how to block Facebook apps and people who are paying a little too much attention to you!

1.  After you've logged in, go to the Account tab in the top left of your profile and click  Account.

2.  Scoll down to and click Privacy Settings.

3.  You will then be at the Privacy Settings page.  Look for Block Lists and click Edit Your Lists.

4.   To block a User who you don't want to see you AT ALL on Facebook, enter the name or email of the person you wish to block in the Block Users area. Once you block someone, that person can no longer be your friend on Facebook or interact with you (except within applications and games you both use). They can't even see you have a profile, good for nosy bosses, stalker freaks, exes, annoying distant relatives or that one guy from high school, etc.

5.  If a complete gonk keeps sending you invites to their favorite applications, you can block that person from sending them to you by entering their name in the Block App Invites section. You'll still carry on a normal 'relationship' with them, you'll just never see their ridiculous apps ever again. Whew!

6.  If someone you know is in a band, or anyone else having tons of events you can never possibly attend, and your inbox is filling up with them and they KEEP SENDING YOU INVITES, you can block them in the Block Event Invites section.  Once you block event invites from someone, you'll automatically ignore future event requests from that friend.

7.  If there are way too many people sending you invites or posting on your wall about the same handful of apps, you can block the apps themselves at the Blocked Apps link.  Once you block an app, it can no longer contact you or use your information. To block an app, go to the app's Facebook Page and click the "Block App" link on the left.

8. If you return to the Privacy Settings page, and click Apps and Websites, you'll have further, really granular control over what apps and such have access to private information i your profile. This is also the location of the coveted Public Search option, where you can completely prevent your profile from showing up in search engines.

Public search controls whether people who enter your name in a search engine will see a preview of your Facebook profile. Because some search engines cache information, some of your profile information may be available for a period of time after you turn public search off.

ALL DONE!

Now you have some pretty robust control over who has access to you on Facebook and can prevent people's tomfoolery with apps, games etc from showing up on your wall! Enjoy the peace and quiet.

I hope this post helps folks, as Facebook doesn't make it very easy to help oneself to a more secure profile. If you have further questions about working with your social media profiles, I'm here to help! Contact me for a consultation on securing your social media profiles.

(Oh, and moral of the story...while you can't predict what a person is going to do, it's smart to not add people if they seem wonky, even a tiny bit.)