While social media is a great tool to connect and communicate with others, there can be dangers to spending time and oversharing on social media, such as over-providing personal information. On top of that, scrolling for hours on end can cause severe mental distress. It is best to be cautious while on social media to ensure that you care for your mental and physical health. Here are a few things I recommend doing to stay safe on social media.
Be aware of how much time you spend online
Like many others, I sometimes find myself scrolling to take a break from the world, and often end up not getting any work done. While utilizing social media can be a good tool for talking with friends and sharing fun experiences with others, too much scrolling can lead to burnout and stress. Constant social media usage can lead to attention shifting and unhealthy comparisons. It is important to take breaks and set time limits for yourself so not all of your time is spent on social media. I suggest setting app limits on your phone for social media apps so you can monitor your time on it. Another way to balance getting work done and scrolling on social media is to set timed goals, such as doing 30 minutes of work and then scrolling for ten minutes.
Utilize social media tools
Sometimes posts show up on my social media feed that make me uncomfortable, such as extreme anti-Israel creators who make me feel targeted as a Jew. On every social media app, there is a button you can click to make similar posts not show up on your feed. On Instagram, it says “This post made me uncomfortable,” while on TikTok, it says “Not interested,” and on Snapchat it says “I don’t like …,” this button gives you the option of choosing to not see similar content or the same creator again. This feature makes the time I spend on social media more pleasant, and ensures that I don’t have to worry about being shown things that make me anxious.
Public vs. Private accounts
In general, it is a good idea to create private accounts and not allow anyone who you don’t know personally to follow you. This prevents the potential threat of someone online hacking your account, or finding and sharing your personal information. Some people follow mutual friends who they don’t know, or follow random people. This is dangerous because there is no way to know who they are and what their intentions are. I’ve always been advised not to follow people that I don’t personally know, and I think this is a good practice for people to follow.
Limit sharing your location
Ensuring your security online is very important. A good way to be safe online is to not post your location, especially if you have a public account. Some apps, like Snapchat, have a live location feature, which can be set up so that anyone who follows you can view your location. However, many of these apps will allow you to turn it off completely, which is what I like to do. I do this because of the potential danger of showing my location online, and I never know who could see it and what their intentions might be.
