Online Privacy Guide for Women

Learn how to be safe and private online, including the best privacy practices for social media, sharing photos, using dating websites and protecting yourself from revenge porn. 

It would be naïve to think that the Internet is the “same” for men as it is for women. Just like the real (offline) world, the online world can be a very different reality for women than for men.

Most men don’t have to worry about being harassed or slut-shamed online for simply being themselves, let alone being upskirted while walking down the street or sitting at an outdoor café or having their most intimate pics posted to revenge porn websites when a relationship breaks down.

Sadly, these are the realities many women now have to face.

The trolling of women online has even caught the attention of Amnesty International.

Not to be deterred, women are avid Internet users. In many countries – including the US, Sweden, and Ireland – Internet use is higher among women than men.

And while everyone is vulnerable online, women are perhaps more vulnerable, especially when it comes to keeping their sexual interests, identity or orientation private. And they too tend to agree.

Surveys show that women are more careful about what they post online, take advantage of privacy settings more, yet still feel less safe from privacy breaches and other risks. This could be because it seems men take greater advantage of things like VPNs, browser plug-ins, two-factor authentication, and other privacy-enhancing techniques. The reasons for this difference are unclear.

Unfortunately, so much of the online privacy info out there today is catered to men and written by men in a male-centric tone.

We’re here to rectify that with this comprehensive online privacy guide for women.

By following the steps laid out in this guide, women can take control of their privacy today. Even following a fraction of the recommendations will greatly increase your online privacy & security.

Basic Online Privacy Tips for Women

No matter what you’re up to on the Internet, these general, basic privacy tips will help keep you safer.

If these are too basic – they make you say “duh” – then jump down to our Advanced Online Privacy Tips for Women which cover Dating Websites, Photos and Sexting, Blackmail & Revenge Porn.

Getting Online

Beware of Public Wi-Fi

We know it’s tempting to connect to the free Wi-Fi at your favorite coffee shop while you enjoy your favorite beverage– but it’s terrible for your privacy, since hackers can use these public hotspots to siphon off your data and personal information.

Your best bet? Avoid public Wi-Fi entirely. But if you insist, make sure you’re not accessing sensitive info, like your online banking account, and that you use a VPN. 

Disconnect/Turn Off Internet When You’re Not Using It

Account and Password Privacy Tips for Women

Whether it’s social media or banking, much of your online activity revolves around various accounts, each with their own username and password. Here’s how to keep these accounts safe and secure.
 

Use Strong Passwords

If you’re still using passwords like ‘12346’, ‘password’, or your pet’s name in this day and age, it’s beyond time to get smarter. You should be using strong passwords on all of your accounts, especially sensitive accounts, like your online banking portal. This means passwords that contain upper and lower cases letters, numbers, AND symbols.

Of course, these stronger passwords can be hard to remember, especially if you have a lot of accounts. Fortunately, there are password management programs like Dashlane and LastPass which will not online store your usernames and passwords for every one of your accounts, they’ll even generate secure passwords so you don’t have to. They will even let you change all your passwords in one go, if you are ever worried about a widespread data breach.
 

Enable Two-Factor Authentication

Another great way to drastically increase the security of your various account is with something called two-factor authentication. With this enabled, when you try to login with your username and password, a single-use code will be sent to your smartphone and you’ll be required to enter this to complete your login.

In short, a hacker would not only need your login details to breach your account, they’d also need access to your smartphone.

One tip though: if you often change phone numbers (for example, you move a lot), this can turn into a real nightmare unless you plan ahead and change the phone numbers on file ahead of time. But that would mean having both your new and old phone numbers active at the same time.

Push notifications are another DFA method that overcomes this problem. Instead of receiving a text, you get a notification on your smartphone containing the security code you need to enter.
 

Log Out Of Accounts When You’re Not Using Them

Of course, accounts don’t have to be directly connected for it to affect your privacy. For instance, one common (and very embarrassing) example is when you are browsing online erotica while logged into one of your social media accounts, and the site starts posting to your wall without you knowing!

You can try to claim you were ‘hacked’ after the fact, but your friends and grandma aren’t buying it. That’s why you should log out of accounts you’re not actively using. It may be a little less convenient, but it’s a lot safer.

Internet Browser Privacy Tips for Women

You can’t browse the Internet without an Internet browser. Your Internet browser knows your secrets. Here are some tips for securing your browser.

Use HTTPS or SSL

Buying something online or accessing your online banking? Make sure your connection is secure by using SSL.

Fortunately, most legitimate websites of this nature now make all their connections this way. Just check for https:// at the start of the website address (as opposed to http://). This means your data (like a password) can’t be intercepted.

By the way, if a site asking for sensitive information like a password or other personal data isn’t using HTTPS, there’s a good chance they’re not trustworthy and may even be scam.
 

Use Browser’s Private Mode, But Know Its Limits

Today’s most popular Internet browsers, from Chrome to Firefox, all have some form of ‘private mode’, which will disable websites from using tracking cookies and the browser from saving your search and browsing histories.

Now, this is a pretty bare bones amount of protection, so don’t go thinking you’re totally safe just because you’re using Chrome’s Incognito mode. But it’s so easy to use that we highly recommend using it, especially when you’re looking at sensitive info.
 

Enable ‘Do Not Track’ In Your Browser

Another quick and easy way to improve your browser’s privacy settings is by enabling ‘Do Not Track’, which warns websites not to collect your info. Unfortunately, these worst offenders of your privacy will track you anyways, but it’s still worth enabling since it only takes a second.
 

Install Privacy-Focused Plug-Ins

There are some browser changes you can make that will have a real, valuable effect on your security. And these come in the form of browser plug-ins and extensions. Here are some of the best:

These helpful add-ons will do everything from forcing sites to use SSL connection, to blocking or destroying tracking cookies, to blocking invasive ads. And all of those are great ways to improve your online privacy.

Clear Browsing Data

Unless you tell your web browser otherwise, it is always tracking the websites you visit and adding it to a history of your browsing activity. This data is accessible right from your browser, meaning anyone who gains access to your computer or smartphone can see what you’re looking at. Talk about embarrassing.

It’s a good idea to clear this browsing data regularly. Some browsers, like Firefox, even let you set this data to be deleted automatically each time you close the browser.

One saving grace: websites you look at while in private mode (see above) won’t be added to this history.
 

Keep Your Search Engine From Tracking You

We’ve already talked about how invasive Google can be. And that applies to their namesake, the popular Google search engine, as well. When you search for something, they’re collecting your IP address, the words you searched for, the date and time you searched, the device you used, and even your location. Of course, other major search engines, like Yahoo and Bing, are just as guilty.

This information will then be saved to databases, sold to advertisers, used to create a detailed profile on you, and even handed over to the government, if required.

Fortunately, there are search engines that aren’t so determined to invade your privacy and collect your info. Here are some of our favorites:

• Ixquick
• DuckDuckGo
• Startpage
• Disconnect Search
• Anonymous Search Engine

Using these search engines instead of Google, Bing, Yahoo, etc. is a great way for anyone, man or woman, to increase their overall privacy and take back control of their personal info.

Social Media Privacy Tips for Women

Use Social Media Sites That Let You Stay Anonymous

There are some social media sites that make it easier to maintain your privacy than others. Reddit, for instance, requires nothing more than a username and email address to sign up – and you can use a totally fake email, if you wish, maintaining your anonymity.

Others, like Facebook, are much harder to keep private. Keep this in mind when deciding which accounts to use and what you share.

You might even consider creating anonymous accounts that don’t use your real info, just so you can be you without worrying about who’s watching.

For maximum privacy? Use a fake name (or last name, at least), fake or generic photo, fake or no personal information, don’t allow people to tag you or post on your wall, don’t post on your own timeline, and only share very limited information through the platform’s messaging service.

Of course, this will greatly limit how you use social media, but it’ll let you keep in contact with long-time friends with minimal threat to your privacy.
 

Adjust Your Facebook Privacy Settings

What you post on social media will never be truly private, but you can at least control how easy it is for strangers to access your info and activity by adjusting the privacy settings. The more restricted your Facebook profile, the better.

• Limit who can see your profile and timeline (Friends is good; Custom, with a small list of specific friends, is even better)
   
• Restrict who can see your friends list (Friends is good; Only Me is even better)
   
• Disallow non-friends from tagging you in posts/photos
   
• Enable options that require your approval before content is posted to your timeline
   
• Make it harder for people to search for your profile by changing the setting that allows them to search for you using your email address and phone number; using a fake name is another tactic used by younger people to great effect.
   
• Instagram and Twitter users can make their profile private and only allow followers on approval
   
• Don’t have a public profile picture of your face: Facial recognition has come a long way and can be used to link your, say, Facebook account to more private pics; in the past, it’s even been used to find porn actresses’ and escorts’ personal social media and out them to friends and family
  

For maximum privacy? Use a fake name (or last name, at least), fake or generic photo, fake or no personal information, don’t allow people to tag you or post on your wall, don’t post on your own timeline, and only share very limited information through the platform’s messaging service.

Of course, this will greatly limit how you use social media, but it’ll let you keep in contact with long-time friends with minimal threat to your privacy.
 

Avoid Location Sharing

It can be fun to upload photos with friends while you’re out at brunch and tag the post with your location.

But this is a bad idea.

• Stalkers (or worse) now know where to find you
• Would-be thieves know you’re not home
• Your location info can be sold to the highest bidder

The next time you share a picture or status on social media, don’t allow your location to be shared. Or at least wait until you’re not longer there and don’t post from the same locations repeatedly, especially if they form a pattern such as revealing that you always go to the gym late on Thursday evenings.

That means posting your recent pics is fine after you get back from Bali, but not while you’re there. And you definitely shouldn’t reveal future travel plans or other plans to leave your house online.
 

Be Careful What You Post

We all know someone who “overshares” on social media. But even if you’re not that person, you should still be mindful about what you post.

In fact, the less you post, the better it is for your privacy, but you should definitely avoid revealing the following:

• Your full date of birth
• Your address
• Your middle name(s)
• Any similarly identifiable information
• Any of this same info about your friends or family

Not only can this information be sold to advertisers or used by an obsessive ex, it could even help scumbags to impersonate you online or even steal your identity. Think about how easy it is to save somebody else’s profile picture and use some of their ‘about me’ details to open a new account and set up a parallel social media account. It happens. A lot more than you think.
 

Only Accept Friend Requests From People You Know

The allure of e-celebrity is very tempting. But if you value your privacy, you’ll want to accept friend requests from only people you personally know. Preferably, from people you know well.

You should also consider the Instagram and Twitter tips above about requiring new followers to be approved by you first.
 

Be Aware Of What Friends And Family Post About You

Of course, restricting what you post on social media won’t make much difference if your BFF or mom is posting sensitive info about you on their profile.

Enabling the privacy settings we enabled above will help, but it’ll still be necessary to do your due diligence – and maybe have a talk with your friends and folks to lay some clear boundaries regarding your privacy.
 

Be Wary Of Connecting Accounts & Social Logins

In our connected age, your various accounts love when you connect them. Facebook wants to connect to Instagram, Tinder and Spotify want you to log in with Facebook, and Google wants to connect to, well, pretty much everything it can.

They claim this is to make things more convenient to you, but in reality, it just ingrains these services further into your online life, making your information more vulnerable and your privacy harder to protect.

So, in most cases, we’d recommend not connecting one account to another – and taking the necessary steps to disconnect accounts that you connected previously.

Using a password manager is a much more private way of logging in to accounts easily and doesn’t require you to cross-share all your information with different players.

Use Private Email

Did you know that most emails are sent via plain text, meaning anyone who has access to them – whether a hacker or the email provider’s admins – can read whatever you’ve written? And of course, Google and others are notorious for collecting and selling their users’ data whether directly or through third parties they partner with.

Using an email provider that offers built-in encryption and doesn’t collect or sell your info is a quick and easy way to improve your privacy. Our favorite secure email providers for women are:

Use a Second, Private Email Account

Websites and apps are constantly trying to get your email address. Giving it out willy-nilly can not only endanger your privacy, it’s easy to end up with an inbox inundated with spam.

That’s why we suggest having a second email address that you use for various accounts sign-ups and offers, while you keep your main address reserved for more important and personal communications.

You can even use one-time disposable email addresses for things like signing up to not-so-important newsletters.
 

Be Careful What You Share Through Email

Don’t share sensitive information in emails, like financial details, your social security number, medical files, or something that could incriminate you. This goes double if you’re using non-encrypted email.
 

Beware Phishing And Scam Emails

You should be careful about clicking on links and downloading attachments from emails when you don’t know what they are – and especially if you don’t know who’s sending them. These tactics are a favorite of hackers and scammers, who can use them to steal your login details or infiltrate your computer with dangerous malware.

Use Password Protection

Who hasn’t lost a phone – or three? Now, imagine your lost phone is discovered by the next person that comes along, and they now have access to all of your texts, pictures, and emails. That’d be embarrassing at best, downright dangerous at worst.

That’s why it’s so important to make sure your smartphone, your laptop, and every other device is protected by a password or passcode. Fingerprint scanners, like Apple’s TouchID, are another option; just keep in mind that (depending where you live) law enforcement can force you to unlock this with your finger, unlike a passcode.
 

Enable An Anti-Virus/Anti-Malware App

Viruses and malware not only affect the performance of your device, they can also be a massive threat to your privacy. Depending on the type of virus, hackers can use them to take data from your device, log the keystrokes you make, and even take control of your laptop or phone’s camera.

To protect yourself, make sure you’re using a good anti-virus software – and that it stays updated.
 

Keep Your Operating System Updated

Whether you’re on Windows 10, Mac, Android or iOS, your operating system will make regularly updates that address security bugs and loopholes. The next time your laptop or phone prompts you for one of these updates, don’t click ‘Ask Me Later’, do it now or as soon as humanly possible.
 

Turn Off Location Tracking

Smart phone users have something a little different to worry about, which is a tendency to track your location. If not disabled, your exact location is being communicated any time your phone is on.

Google and Apple do this under the semblance of making things like map searches faster and easier, but is it worth your privacy? Fortunately, this can be disabled in your settings – and watch out for apps that ask for permission to track your location too.
 

Stop Over-Sharing With Google

Did you know that your Google account is constantly collecting information on you – from your browsing history in Chrome to your voice searches to which YouTube videos you watch – and saving it to their database? Can you say creepy?

To assess the damage, go to your Google account and select Personal & Privacy Info then Manage your Google Activity. Here you’ll see what’s been tracked so far, and you’ll also have the option to delete it all.

From there, you can use the Activity Controls to “pause” this collection going forward. Of course, who knows how much this actual deters Google, but it’s the least you can do if you value your privacy.
 

Use A Privacy Screen or Filter

Who knows who’s sitting behind you in the cafe, library, or airport lounge while you use your laptop – and what their intentions are. While you’re typing out an email, checking on a business account, or editing some selfies, wandering eyes might be watching your screen –reading your embarrassing personal information or even writing down your login details.

Fortunately, a privacy screen will make it a lot harder for snoopers to see your screen and poke their nose in your business.

A privacy screen (sometimes called a privacy filter or blackout screen) is something you put on your computer screen that make it unviewable from an angle. Some laptops already have this built-in, but you can also buy them separately.
 

Encrypt Your Personal Data (Hard Drives and Storage Media)

Even if you have a password protecting your device, a clever thief or hacker could still get access to your files. But if they’re encrypted, they still won’t be able to read them (in most cases).

That’s why encrypting the data on your computers and mobile devices is such a great idea.

Two good options for PC are VeraCrypt and DiskCryptor.

And for smartphones, there’s CyberSafe (Android) and Crypto Disks (iOS).

Advanced Online Privacy Guide for Women

The privacy tips above could just as well apply to everyone and not just women. The tips below re different.

The advanced privacy tips below apply especially to women.
 

Be Safe on Dating Websites

For instance, did you know the shocking amount of information Tinder and other apps or sites are collecting and sharing about you? Your locations, your taste in partners, your messages, and more. In one case, a hookup platform was sharing the self-declared IV stats of its customers with a third party!

If you insist on swiping and message your way to your next partner, here are some ways to stay safe while doing so.

• Don’t connect accounts: Tinder would love for you to connect your profile to your Facebook, Instagram, Spotify, email, and more – don’t

• Don’t use a previous username: Your OkCupid username shouldn’t be the same one you’re using on Instagram, Pinterest, and the like; otherwise it’s only too easy for someone to Google that name and find all of your other accounts and information

• Use a fake number for people you don’t know well: Most online relationships quickly migrate to phone or messaging app, but you shouldn’t be giving out your number to every potential creep you’ve just met; use a service like Google Voice to create a temporary number, at least until after the first date

• Be careful with what you share: As we mentioned above, dating apps and sites are collecting a ton of information about you, so don’t think what you do and say on them is private (or even just limited to you and your matches/interests); only share the stuff you don’t mind being store in a database at Tinder HQ; being stingy with personal information will also protect you from would-be stalkers

• Don’t share passwords: This may seem like a no-brainer, but sharing any of your online passwords, even if it’s just for a Spotify account, with your partner or friend sets a bad precedent that can be used against you in the future

• Protect your physical safety: If you only follow one piece of advice on this list, this should be the one; online dating has increased connections, but it’s also caused an increase in rape, so stay smart and protect your safety – and that means no “Netflix and Chill” at some random stranger’s house

Photo Privacy Tips for Women

Photos are such a big part of our online lives, whether it’s a travel pic shared on Instagram or just a selfie on our smartphone. But there are some things you should know if you want to keep your images safe.
 

Think Twice Before Sexting

When sex is on the mind, we don’t always use our best judgment. And sexting is a great example of that. This is when two people share intimate messages and pics via text message, online messenger, etc.

A full section specific to Sexting follows, but here are some general photo privacy tips.

But while it may be a lot of fun at the time, it’s also a great way to get your body and private parts exposed to dozens, if not thousands, of people you don’t know. Your chat mate might show your photos to their friends, post them online, or even have them discovered by a nosy parent or jealous partner snooping through their phone, laptop, or online accounts.

Of course, depending on where you live there may be laws to protect against this kind of thing, but how will you really know if people are privately sharing your photos? Or whether your photo is posted on some obscure website on the Internet? Or the dark web?

In most cases, you won’t. And that’s why it’s much better to never share these private images in the first place. Because as we’ve seen time and again, even the rich and famous are susceptible to leaks that leave their private parts plastered all over the Internet.

So, ladies, before you hit ‘send’, think extra hard about where that pic might end up, especially if the relationship goes sour.
 

Be Careful What You Send To The Cloud

Is your iPhone automatically uploading all of your pics to the cloud without your input? It may be, if you haven’t turned it off in your settings. Celebrities, like Jennifer Lawrence, learned this the hard way during #TheFappening when their risqué private photos were taken from the cloud and released to the Internet for everyone to see.

Of course, the cloud can be a helpful place to store your harmless family and vacation photos, so they don’t get lost forever if you break your device, but it’s probably a good idea to personally decide which pictures you want to upload rather than letting it happen automatically.

In fact, it’s even better to save those pics through an encrypted cloud service/app, instead of iCloud or Dropbox. Edward Snowden has recommended SpiderOak in the past, and he knows a thing or two about online privacy. SpiderOak apps are available for Windows, Mac OS, iOS and Android.
 

Don’t Include Location Info In Your Pictures

You may not know it but many of your photos have location data written into the file, along with other metadata like the brand and model of the camera or device used.

Now, in many cases this might not be a big deal, but it could be used to get the exact location of your house, place of work, etc.

Fortunately, you can stop your smartphone from adding this data in the first place in your settings. For iOS, you’ll go to Settings > Privacy > Location Services and toggle the Camera setting off.

You can also remove this data from old images using various websites, apps, and even through Windows. For the latter, simply right-click on the photo, select Properties > Details Remove Properties and Personal Information and then simply select what data (also known as EXIF data) you want removed.

Most social media sites – including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram – will remove this data automatically, so there’s no need to go back and re-upload all your old pics.

Sexting, Blackmail and “Revenge Porn”

These risks may sound alarmist, but are more common than you think.

Revenge porn seems to be popping up more and more as those sexts and passionate videos (whether taken with consent at the time or not) come back to bite when a relationship sours.
 

Consequences Can Be Severe

Too many suicides, especially among young women, have been linked to such incidents. 🙁

Thankfully, not all instances of revenge porn, blackmail and other nasty behaviors end with such dire consequences, but they can still have serious and long-lasting implications on the victims.

These consequences can include: loss of job, personal or workplace humiliation, academic oustings, restricted opportunities in public life, serial stalking, non-consensual outings, ruined reputations etc.

And hackers are now in on these acts and trying to cash in. There are increasing instances of malevolent elements setting up fake websites and stinging visitors with demands for cash payments else threaten to disclose the visitor’s activities to family, friends, employers or the world-at-large.

Keep this in mind the next time you think you are signing up for a too-good-to-be-true dating or erotica website.

Be especially careful when prompted to download something to your device. There are instances of “ransomware” where people are influenced to download and install malware which is then used to lock them out of their device until they make a payment to unlock it.
 

Risqué Texts, Photos & Videos

Also, be wary when you think you are harmlessly flirting in a video chat. Maybe it is being recorded by the other side to be used against you. Or maybe it is being recorded by a third party without any of the participants’ knowledge.

Be careful sending naughty images of yourself or saucy messages, no matter how private or limited an audience you think applies. However, sometimes in the heat of the moment of when under the influence (of love or otherwise) our common-sense lapses and we do things we shouldn’t.

Even when you are careful and there is a trusting participant(s), accidents can happen, things can leak, and some people just turn out in the end to be downright nasty and spiteful. Once you let the genie out of the bottle, there is no getting it back in and it's “out there” forever, just waiting to come back and bite you someday.

So only exchange steamy messages, images or video when you are as absolutely certain as you can be. When you have any doubts or hesitation, listen to that inner instinct and refrain.

A Safer Way to Sext?

Maybe you have made the decision that all is okay and will be okay, and go ahead to engage in a risqué text exchange, photo shoot or naughty video. Even then, still apply some caution particularly with photos and videos if it's going to be done on a device that you don't have 100% control over.

In such cases, consider having your fun and deleting it permanently as soon as possible afterwards while you can. Get the other person’s agreement about this beforehand. In fact, it can be a good way to clinch the deal. If your partner is begging to take photos while you are in the act, tell them you will agree but only if the images are deleted immediately after viewing them and reliving the fun moments.

But even this type of “deal” requires a lot of trust. If your partner gives any hint that they are the kind of creep that will agree, only to renege on the deal, then take that into account before you even entertain the option with them.

And even the deleting step requires yet more trust and diligence. Deleted items - whether images, videos or text messages - are easily restored on the storage media of most devices, so make sure you know how to delete the relevant items permanently, so they can't be later restored and come back to haunt you.
 

Don’t End Up on a Revenge Porn Site

In fact, this is how many an embarrassing photo or video actually end up online. You record your fun, get your jollies watching later, delete the naughty contents on the device, and then forget all about it. 

Weeks, months or even years later, you sell, trade-in or discard the device. Unbeknownst to you, some creep gets their hands on the device and restores the long-ago deleted content.

If you are lucky the creep merely enjoys it for him/herself, indulging in a kind of voyeurism. If you are unlucky, the creep posts the items online or trades them with like-minded creeps.

In fact, this trading in other people’s intimate and private photos and videos is a sad hobby and almost a cottage-industry supported by websites and forums.

Conclusion

As you’ve seen, many of the Internet privacy tips above are actually universal and can apply equally to men and women and anyone along that spectrum.

But, sadly, women face more risks and are subject to more abuse online, so these tips apply especially to women.

Apply as many as you can, as often as you can, to help protect yourself.