A Comprehensive Guide to Your Digital Footprint in the Age of the Internet of Things

A Comprehensive Guide to Your Digital Footprint in the Age of the Internet of Things The trail of digital information you leave behind when you do anything online. Once it is created, willingly or unwillingly, your digital footprint cannot be deleted. You leave a digital footprint when you… Make inquiries on search engines Click on links, tags and hashtags Scroll through or stop on webpages and apps Move your cursor on a webpage Download files Let websites remember you and your password Share your location with apps and people Add and use extensions on your browsers Join online groups and forums View user profiles on social media Like, react to, repost or comment on a post Share stories that gets deleted in a day Get a screenshot of some social media posts Use an app or a blog to journal your thoughts and feelings Make online purchases Use your car’s or phone’s navigation app Track your activity with fitness trackers Give comments to your virtual assistants Watch your favorite shows on your smart TV Open or close the door of your smart refrigerator Ask your smart home environment system to lock the doors Your digital footprint has potential to… -Affect how people such as your friends, future employers and academic review committees perceive you. -Improve your online experience by giving necessary statistics for web developers to improve functionality and performance of websites and apps. -Be used to show you targeted ads based on your previous searches, page visits, likes, reposts or purchases. -Be exploited to get a hold of your accounts especially if you unknowingly give out information related to your passwords and security questions. -Analyze characteristics of populations and conduct social engineering if a mass of people leaves their digital traces. Reduce your digital footprint! Search yourself online Delete cookies from your browser Read privacy policies, terms and conditions of all services and devices Log out from and delete inactive accounts Carefully tailor the content you share Untag yourself from a content added by someone else Control who can see your posts with privacy settings Be mindful of which posts you like, react and comment Turn off background location tracking of your apps Check with whom do your fitness trackers share your data Use a password keeper on your computer Manage your digital footprint to have a good online reputation and to be safe!