One of the things that makes your digital footprint important is that it can be seen by many different groups of people. Depending on the privacy settings you have configured, and the nature of the information shared, people might be able to see different bits of your footprint, but no one has access to your entire digital footprint, though everyone can see enough to form an opinion of you (or about you).
Any information you share on public profiles or forums can be seen by anyone who visits those pages. This includes social media posts, blog entries, comments, and public forums. Any web content indexed by search engines (e.g., Google) can be found by anyone searching for your name or related keywords.
Information shared with your friends, followers, or connections on social media platforms is visible to them according to your privacy settings. This includes posts, photos, and comments. Depending on your privacy settings, friends of friends or connections of connections may also see certain information.
Employers often check the online presence of current and prospective employees. This includes reviewing LinkedIn profiles, public social media accounts, and any other publicly available information. Some companies use third-party services to perform comprehensive background checks, which may include a review of your digital footprint.
When elections are called, political parties have to find candidates to stand for election. Potential candidates are vetted for suitability by companies who specialise in performing background checks, and of course they look at candidates' digital footprints, especially social media posts. This is but one example (in the UK) of an electoral candidate being suspended after some of their social media posts came to light. Previously, in the same constituency, a sitting MP was suspended from their party because of old social media posts.
Advertisers use cookies and tracking technologies to gather data about your online behaviour to create targeted ads. This information can include your browsing history, your search queries, and other interactions with online content. Data Brokers are companies that collect and sell information about consumers to marketers, which is then used to refine advertising strategies.
You might think that Google and Facebook are a search engine and social media platform respectively, but both are, first and foremost, advertising companies. A huge driver for Google and Facebook is to make their platforms more and more useful to businesses, so they spend more money advertising with Google and Facebook
Government agencies and law enforcement can access your digital footprint through legal means, especially if you are under investigation.
Any information you share with public records or government databases is accessible to government authorities.
Companies that provide online services (e.g., social media platforms, email providers) have access to the data you share with them. They may also share this data with third parties as outlined in their privacy policies. It's important that you read and understand privacy policies so you are aware of how your data is used.
Applications you install on your devices may access various types of data, depending on the permissions you grant.
Educational institutions might review the digital footprints of prospective and current students, particularly during the admissions process, and will have access to data generated through your use of Moodle and other college systems,
If your accounts or devices are compromised, cybercriminals can access your digital footprint and use it for malicious purposes, such as identity theft or financial fraud. Scammers can gather information from your digital footprint to craft convincing phishing attacks.
Think more about what you information you share online: you don't know who is going to be able to see it!
Image: You are being watched. By beebright Adobe Stock Education Licence
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