Keeping your Facebook page out of Google
What's happening?
In September 2007, Facebook decided to make some information from its users' profiles visible to people who aren't on Facebook. Anyone who visits the Facebook web site can now search for users without having to log in first. It's not possible to view a person's whole profile without logging in, but it is possible to see their default picture and that they have a Facebook account.
In October 2007, all of this information will also show up on Google and other search engines.
Why is this important?
It's becoming more and more important to maintain a good reputation on the Internet. Bosses, landlords, parents, professors and others can easily search the web for your name to find out more about you or what you've been doing. It's a good idea to make sure that people don't find anything out about you that you don't want them to find.
In October 2007, the first result on Google for your name might well be your Facebook profile. Many people aren't comfortable with that.
What can I do?
Facebook allows you to opt out of having your information displayed to people who don't use Facebook and on search engines. Follow these instructions to opt out.
- Log into Facebook
- Click "privacy" on the upper right hand corner of the page
- Click "Edit Settings" next to "Search"
- Find the label "Who can find my public search listing outside of Facebook?"
- Uncheck the box next to "Allow anyone to see my public search listing" and/or "Allow my public search listing to be indexed by external search engines."
