At Facebook, we work hard to protect the people who use our site. From our User Operations team, who work to re-secure compromised accounts, to the Engineering team, that designs and implements new security features like login notifications. Everyone is working to ensure users have a safe, enjoyable experience. Our personnel, investment in equipment, development of proprietary tools and optional security features help us keep you safe. But we know this task is never completed, and so we continue to innovate.

 

Facebook Security Tips

Use our Security Tools – Review your security settings and consider enabling login notifications and login approvals. They’re in the drop-down box under “Account Settings” on the upper right hand corner of your Facebook home page.Use our Security Tools – Review your security settings and consider enabling login notifications and login approvals. They’re in the drop-down box under “Account Settings” on  the upper right hand corner of your Facebook home page.

Dont Click on Strange Links: even if they’re from friends, and notify the person if you see something suspicious.

Dont Click on Friend Requests from Unknown Users

Use the Report Links on the Site: if you come across scam or spam click on the report links so that Facebook can take it down.

Dont download any applications that you don’t trust.

Visit Facebooks Security Page: http://www.facebook.com/security, read the items “Take Action” and “Threats.”

Facebook has always been committed to protecting the account and information of people who use our site. Our 300-member Security Team works around the clock to thwart spammers and keep Facebook safe. We process a huge amount of content everyday to protect the people on Facebook – we vet over 26 billion pieces of content and 2 trillion link that  clinks daily.

By utilizing advanced technology, our engineers work to ensure that using Facebook is a safe  experience. We have several systems that run behind the scenes to discover, disarm, and disable  threats. We have added tools to prevent various forms of spam and have implemented  anti-scraping protection to ensure that your data stays safe. We also work with law enforcement  and check the 300 million photos that are uploaded daily against a blacklist database from  international, federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.

But, not all the security mechanisms operate in the background and we want to give everyone more control over their Facebook experience. We have several user controls that utilize the power of social connections to keep everyone safe on the site. Some of these are automatic parts of your account, while others allow you to choose what level of security best fits your lifestyle. We encourage people to visit the Facebook Security Page or our Help Center to learn  about these tools.

We arm the people who use our site with the power to protect themselves. You can easily enable controls that will keep you updated and secure. Over the last year we have launched tools such as login approvals, login notifications, one-time passwords and HTTPS browsing and we are constantly looking for ways to educate users and encourage them to use these tools.

So far we’ve been pleased with our results to keep Facebook safe and are working hard each day to improve our systems and tools. Less than 0.5% of users experience spam on any given
day, and less than 0.1% of logins are classified as suspicious. However, we are never fully satisfied,  and strive to build innovative tools and systems to adapt and respond to new threats. We  take the safety of our users and the security of their data seriously and strive to ensure a safe and secure experience when you use Facebook.

About The Author

Joe Sullivan, Former Chief Security Officer at Facebook