Facebook now sets all new post to "Friends Only" by default

Privacy has always been a big concern when it comes to social networking, and Facebook has been at the frontlines of both sides of the privacy debate. Back in 2009 Facebook introduced a new default option to let the entire world see your post, but that lead to several outcries from privacy advocates. Today it appears as if those cries have been heard, and Facebook has made some adjustments to fix this issue.

Facebook now defaults all new users post and images to the "Friends Only" option which means that those pieces of content will only be visible to that users friends, and the public will not be able to read or see them. Existing users will see their settings remain the same, but Facebook is notifying them of their current privacy settings and asking them if they would like to change them. Facebook is calling this a Privacy Checkup, and the message will appear in the form of a popup when existing users post a new post.

While all of this is good for those who over share everything (I am guilty myself), I find that the best privacy policy is to only share things on any social media platform that you do not mind the entire world reading. Just take a moment and ask yourself, "Would I like my boss, mother, PTA president, or local news station to read this?" if so, then post it. If not, well it may be best to leave it off of Facebook.