There are recommended ways to use social media websites as facebook and still keep an acceptable level of personal security

Facebook has provided users with powerful controls to protect themselves online, and it is up to individuals to check and ensure that appropriate settings are in place. Sophos has published recommendations for how to configure the settings for each of these privacy areas of Facebook.

Five minutes spent learning the ins-and-outs of Facebook's privacy settings, for instance, could save a lot of heartache later.

If you do use Facebook -- or other social networking sites -- here are a few security tips from Sophos:

1. Think carefully about who you allow to become your friend Once you have accepted someone as your friend they will be able to access any information about you (including photographs) that you have marked as viewable by your friends. You can remove friends at any time should you change your mind about someone.

2. Show "limited friends" a cut-down version of your profile You can choose to make people 'limited friends' who only have access to a cut-down version of your profile if you wish. This can be useful if you have associates who you do not wish to give full friend status to, or feel uncomfortable sharing personal information with.

3. Disable options, then open them one by one Think about how you want to use Facebook. If it's only to keep in touch with people and be able to contact them then maybe it's better to turn off the bells and whistles. It makes a lot of sense to disable an option until you have decided you do want and need it, rather than start with everything accessible.

Sophos recommended privacy settings for Facebook