Privacy Settings You Should Check Right Now
Quick Answer
Default settings on most platforms and devices are configured for maximum data collection and sharing, not maximum user privacy. Changing a handful of settings across your phone, browser, and social media accounts significantly reduces your data exposure. This guide covers the most important ones.
On Your iPhone
Location services: Settings → Privacy & Security → Location Services. Review every app. Most apps do not need your location "Always", change to "While Using" or "Never" where appropriate. Pay particular attention to social media apps, weather apps, and games.
App permissions: Settings → Privacy & Security. Review access to your Camera, Microphone, Contacts, Photos, and Health data. Remove access for any app where you do not understand why it needs it.
App tracking: Settings → Privacy & Security → Tracking → toggle off "Allow Apps to Request to Track." This prevents apps from tracking your activity across other apps and websites.
Review app privacy reports: Settings → Privacy & Security → Privacy Report shows which apps have recently accessed your microphone, camera, and location.
On Android
App permissions: Settings → Privacy → Permission Manager. Review by permission type (Camera, Microphone, Location, Contacts). Revoke access for apps that do not need it.
Location history: Settings → Location → App permissions. Set apps to "Only while using" rather than "All the time."
Ad personalisation: Settings → Google → Ads → "Delete advertising ID." This limits cross-app ad tracking.
On Facebook and Instagram (Meta)
Who sees your posts: Profile → Settings → Privacy → "Who can see your future posts." Set to Friends rather than Public unless you have a reason for public posts.
Location tagging: Disable automatic location tagging on photos. Remove location data from existing posts through Privacy Checkup.
Off-Facebook activity: Settings → Your Facebook Information → Off-Facebook Activity. This shows what companies send Facebook data about your behaviour on other websites. You can clear this history and limit future tracking.
Apps with access to your account: Settings → Apps and Websites. Remove any apps you no longer use that have access to your Facebook account.
On Google
Google account activity: Go to myaccount.google.com → Data & Privacy. Review what activity Google is saving (search history, YouTube history, location history). Toggle off categories you do not want saved.
Google Maps timeline: Google Maps → Your Timeline → Settings → Delete Timeline. This removes your location history if you do not want Google storing your movements.
Gmail third-party app access: myaccount.google.com → Security → Third-party apps with account access. Remove any apps you no longer use or do not recognise.
In Your Browser
Saved passwords: Do not use your browser to save passwords. Use a dedicated password manager instead. Browser-saved passwords can be exposed if someone accesses your device.
Cookies and tracking: In Chrome, go to Settings → Privacy and Security → Cookies. Enable "Block third-party cookies." In Firefox, Enhanced Tracking Protection is enabled by default.
Privacy-focused browsers and extensions: Consider adding uBlock Origin (blocks ads and trackers) or Privacy Badger to your browser. Both are free and well-maintained.
Make It a Routine
Privacy settings change when apps update, and new permissions get added silently. Set a reminder to review your phone's app permissions and social media privacy settings every three to six months.