You can’t wait to start tweeting when you sign in to Twitter and usually forget about the security part. You’ve meant to make those much-needed security setting changes, but you simply haven’t gotten around to it. The first step to protecting your Twitter account is knowing what you need to change.
You can start with simple things, such as choosing a user name that doesn’t have your real name or nickname. That’s one of the good things about Twitter you can have a username that hides your real name. You can change your username as many times as you want. Let’s see what other settings you can change to stay safe on Twitter.
What to Change to Stay Safe on Twitter
You may have been putting off making those changes because it may seem like a lot. But, you can always try changing a few things at a time instead of everything all at once. You can also try changing your Twitter password for a stronger one. Then there’s enabling the two-step verification.
I mentioned that one thing you can start with has a username that hides your real name. If that’s something you need to change, here’s how you can change your Twitter username.
How to Change Your Twitter Username
If you’re not happy with your current username, here’s how you can change it. Once you’re signed in to Twitter, click on the three dots at the bottom left. Click on Settings and Privacy.
Locate and click on the Your Account information. Twitter will ask that you enter your current password to access this information. So, if you’ve been signing in through Google, for example, and forgot your password, you might need to reset it.
In Account Information, click on the Username option at the top. In the username box, you’ll see your current username and username suggestions at the bottom. If you see one you like, you can click on it, followed by the blue Save button at the bottom right. Or, you can type it out at the top and save.
Keep in mind that usernames need to be four to 15 characters long. It can only have letters, numbers, and underscores. No spaces are allowed. Also, your display name can be up to 50 characters long.
How to Stop Others from Tagging You in Their Pictures
Stopping others from tagging you in pictures is a great way to stay safe. You can prevent others from tagging pictures with which you would never want to be connected. You can make this change by going to:
- Settings and Privacy
- Privacy and safety
- Audience and tagging
- Photo tagging
Here you can toggle it off altogether, or you can choose only to have people you follow tag you.
How to Prevent Others from Finding You On Twitter
For those times when you simply want to disappear, you can prevent those who have your email or phone number from finding you. By enabling this option, you prevent Twitter from suggesting you to others. To enable this option, you’ll need to go to:
- Privacy and Settings
- Discoverability and contacts
You’ll only need to uncheck the boxes in this section to prevent others from finding you using your email or phone number.
As long as you’re there, you can also remove all your contacts if that’s something you want to do. You’ll need to enter your password to do that.
How to Log out of Twitter Sessions You’re Currently Not Using
It’s very convenient to be able to use Twitter from various devices. But, since you can get distracted easily, you might forget to log out from certain devices. This can result in others getting access to your account and posting things you would never post. The good news is that you don’t have to remember all the sessions you opened.
Twitter can list all the open sessions and easily let you close them. To do this, you’ll need to go to:
- Settings and privacy
- Security and account access
- Apps and sessions
- Sessions
At the top, you’ll see the session that is currently active, and at the bottom, you’ll see the sessions that are open but you’re not using. You’ll know what device is being used to connect to your Twitter account and from what location.
How to Filter the Private Messages You Receive
If you don’t feel comfortable with anyone being able to send you a private message or simply want to avoid spam, Twitter has an option for that. You can filter who can and can’t send you a direct message. You’ll need to go to:
- Settings and privacy
- Privacy and safety
- Direct messages
In Direct Messages, you can choose from three options. You can check or uncheck the boxes for options such as:
- Allow messages requests from everyone
- Filter low-quality messages
- Show read receipts – By turning off this option, others won’t know when you’ve read their messages.
How to Prevent Twitter from Knowing Your Interests
The Twitter algorithms analyze what you interact with and what you frequently look at. Then with that information, Twitter knows what ads to show you. Still, not everyone feels comfortable with Twitter gathering all that information. If you don’t feel comfortable with that, you can turn this off by going to:
- Settings and privacy
- Privacy and safety
- Content you see
- Interests
Conclusion
As you can see, there is a lot you can do to keep your Twitter account safe. You can change your password for a strong one and enable two-factor authentication. You can filter what direct messages you get and prevent Twitter from knowing what interests you the most. If you don’t have time to do everything all at once, you can first start with the basic stuff. What are you going to change first? Let me know in the comments below, and don’t forget to share the article with others on social media.
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