It's time to polish up your profile...

Taking inspiration from Facebook’s recent overhaul of its profile pages, RIH shows you how to revamp the ‘online you’ for 2011!

Safety First

Revelations surrounding Facebook‘s misuse of users account information means that it’s essential to ensure that your personal information is only accessible to people that you know. Even though you are able to pick and choose who you makes friends with, regularly check your Account and Privacy settings to make sure you are not sharing your information with people who you do not know. It is advisable not to display your personal email address and mobile number, even if you amend your settings so that only your friends can see, because if there is a problem with the security of your account then anybody could access this information. Facebook is currently working on ways to improve the security levels of peoples’ profiles.

Happy Snaps

Everyone loves looking through their friends’ photos, and we can’t help giggling over some of the unfortunate, unflattering snapshots that show us in our least finest hour. However, with more and more colleagues adding you as a friend, not to mention distant relatives and even our own mothers, the question ‘to tag or not to tag’ needs some careful consideration. As a general rule, try to resist the temptation of tagging your friend in her hungover, post-NYE state. It may be hilarious to you, but your pal may not find it so funny. And remember that there is always a risk of the tables turning! Because even though you can de-tag, you cannot stop people looking through an album and spotting that picturesque image of you clutching the toilet seat after a heavy night out!

Photographs snapped in the Ladies Room during a night out are arguably some of the funniest snaps to take, but not to look at (especially in a bleary-eyed state the morning after!). The safest option is to not bother uploading them on Facebook, as these photos are embarrassing, not to mention verging on grotesque.

Old school photos from when you were a chubby five-year-old are embarrassing and they can also be quite boring. Light-hearted analysis has found that people who display their old school photos or baby photos as their profile image tend to cling onto the past. Whether this is true or not, having an up-to-date profile picture gives a better impression of the kind of person you are.

Friend or Foe?

It used to be ‘cool’ to have lots of friends on Facebook. Now, however, it seems it is just as cool to be selective about who you makes friends with. As a general rule, a good way to deciding whether to keep or delete friends is to think about whether you could happily hold a conversation with them if you bumped into them down the pub. If you couldn’t imagine anything more awkward with one of your ‘friends’, it might be time to say goodbye.

But how many are your real friends?

Also, be wary of people who try to add you who you do not have any friends in common with. If you don’t recognise them then avoid accepting their friend request, because reports have shown an increase of fake profiles that have been set up by scammers who try and access your personal information for fraud and theft purposes.

What’s on Your Mind?

Letting the world know our current status has become increasingly popular thanks to the likes of Facebook and particularly Twitter. However, whilst Tweeters tend to update their status numerous times a day, even if it’s just to let the world know that you’ve had ‘the best sleep ever’, your status on Facebook needn’t be so flippant. Having a status relating to your love life should also be avoided at all costs. Whether a status mentions how loved up someone is, or how their heart has been broken and they are now drinking themselves into oblivion, a status which refer to someone’s relationship is bound to get people yawning so it’s best to keep it light-hearted.

Facebook: A Friend for Life

Facebook has changed the face of the world, keeping us in touch with people and allowing us to see what our friends have been getting up to at the click of a button. Give your profile a spring clean and check over your Privacy settings to revitalise your Facebook account for 2011.