How to prevent your Facebook account from duplication

With 50 million users within the country, and the numbers growing slow and steady, Facebook has a considerable user base in India. This brings the company many advantages from the corporate standpoint, and with the users too becuase social networking seems to be easier and more attractive than ever before. But along with the good, the bad also creeps along. Through various 3rd party applications, personal data of users are being stolen, often to replicate into fake profiles, to distribute malware, and other undesireable material via the social network. Hence, to prevent this from happening, here are a few handy tips:

Secure data aginst 3rd party apps: Though the ideal situation would be to not unveil too much of one's personal data online, but it for those who have content and data there, it makes sense to ensure how many 'permissions' has one granted to 3rd party apps, when they ask access to it for usage of the application. In order to keep a check on it, one could take a look at mypermissions.org. Without any persnal data, one could take a look at all the list permissions one has granted various 3rd party apps, and then also minitor the unwanted ones. If needed be, the inactive applications can be removed.Alternatives include Secure.Me, which have an extensive list of over 500,000 Facebook applications and the way they use personal data from users. This software also helps trace any kind of malware that may exist. PrivacyStore is another alternative which helps keep check on whether mobile devices are at risk of malwares and viruses should they be a part of a user's Facebook profile.

Use free security applicaions from Facebook: With over 900 million users, Facebook has tied up with the major virus and malware monitoring companies Microsoft, Mc'Fee, Trend Micro, Sophos and Symantec, that help users monitor whether they are under any cyber attack or not. Applications such as BitDefender SafeGo, Norton SafeWeb, and Defensio are some applications which are available on 6-month trials periods, and can also be reinstalled on one's profile later on.

Keep a tab on Facebook privacy settings: Even though web security is made possible by the various applications as mentioned, but one's privacy settings also need a close watch from time to time. It is recommended that users atleast be aware of what default privacy settings they have for the facebook profile. To check and edit the settings, go to tab labeled as ‘Account’ at the top right corner of your Facebook page and click ‘Privacy Settings.’

For starters, users can enable device detection from Account Settings. Click on Security and enable the feature that says “When a new mobile or computer logs into this account.” Check on ‘Send me an email’ option. This way, if an unrecognised device is used to access your account, user would be alerted on the registered email id.

Also, always keep a check on the apps allowed to access to Facebook. User can remove unwanted apps from Facebook by clicking on Privacy Settings, and then selecting Apps option from where required settings can be edited.