• Home
• /
• Tech

Scared of Facebook data leak? Maybe you shouldn't use LinkedIn too

LinkedIn visibility controls are clear and easily accessible to the non-technical user.

Recently, news of personal data of Facebook users being compromised put millions into a tizzy. However, if the reports are to be believed, then not just Facebook but LinkedIn also may put privacy at stake.
Currently, new LinkedIn profiles by default allow search engine crawlers to access your name, title, current company, and picture. While the user can switch that option off easily, if you don't do it quick enough, that information will be indexed and public, irrespective of any subsequent privacy changes you make, said a report in MalwarebytesLabs.

Searching within Linkedin based on information you get from Google Cache will often yield profiles of people who thought they set their data to private, the report added.
Like some other third party services, LinkedIn doesn't delete your account. You can "close" it, but the service retains the right to your information indefinitely. So if you "close" your account, and LinkedIn sustains a breach in the future, your data will be there, the report said. LinkedIn, in a response to the report, said the accounts are deleted after 20 days.
"Members control their connections, who can see them (including keeping them private if they wish) and only first degree connections can get access to your contact info on LinkedIn," a response from LinkedIn said.
LinkedIn also has a lockdown option that allows users to restrict their viewable connections and email address to not be viewable by anyone. But it lacks are granular permissions on specific data elements assignable to each level of connection.