In the News
Facebook takes aim at connecting even more people. In Facebook Groups can now launch up to 250-person chat rooms, Josh Constine at TechCrunch discusses Facebook’s connection of Groups and Messenger to allow chats of up to 250 people as an opt in for Group users. Constine explains that over 1.4 billion people use Facebook Groups and that Group Chats will now allow easier conversations and connections within these popular Groups.
Our Take
While the idea of larger group chat options allows for a larger sense of community on social media platforms, it is important to understand the security risks that come with participating in such services. While, Facebook Groups and similar platforms are a great way to contact and learn from like-minded individuals, large chat rooms make it more difficult to distinguish who is speaking and who is just sharing. With a large group of individuals sharing personal their information, the potential of oversharing information is increased. Social media already has major security risks associated with oversharing, and increasing the size of group chats may heighten these risks.
Recommendations
So how can you protect your personal information when using online chat services?
- Be aware of default settings on mobile apps and turn on privacy settings as needed
- Refrain from sharing highly personal information in large groups where you do not know many of the users
- Be cautious when setting up in person meetings with online connections and take the necessary precautions when doing so