According to Pew Research, 75% of seniors in America aged 65 and above are Internet users. Through social media, older people can connect with their family and friends. This, in turn, helps them cope with isolation, associate with the larger community, and keep tabs on their loved ones.
On the other hand, social media can expose older adults to fake profiles and scammers. You need to stay cautious and avoid falling victim to malicious activity online.
Let’s discuss good social media practices for seniors and how to keep your accounts safe with social media security tips.
Choose the Right Platform
It’s essential to consider the social media sites on which your family and friends are most active. Some of the senior-friendly social media platforms include the following:
Through these apps, you can connect with your loved ones and be part of a social media experience you enjoy. For instance, being on WhatsApp allows you to video call your friends or family members who may be far away. This makes it easy for you to feel close to your loved ones and share information on your day-to-day life.
Create Engaging Content
When posting on social media, you need to understand the preferences and interests of your audience. You can share tips on lifestyle, finance, and health stories. Also, you can post content on wellness and hobbies that older people can participate in.
Use simple language, large fonts, and clear visuals to make your content more accessible and relatable to your target audience.
Simplify Your Social Media Experience
Social media platforms have features and tools designed to help you have an easy time while navigating them. For instance, Facebook has a ‘favorites’ feature that prioritizes posts from your closest friends and family members.
YouTube has a voice search feature that lets you get the content you wish to watch without typing anything. These tools can streamline your social media experience, especially if you’re not tech-savvy.
Learn and Adapt
Technology keeps evolving, and you must continue learning daily. Some local libraries and communities in Dallas educate seniors on how to be savvy social media users. Take advantage of these classes and stay ahead of your game in the social media world.
Additionally, social media is a good platform for learning and mental stimulation. Seniors can find educational and interactive content online, such as games and puzzles. These contribute to their overall mental health and sense of purpose.
Beware of Scammers
Businesses use social media platforms to conduct giveaway contests to attract new customers and improve client engagement. Scammers use these contests by forming fake profiles and extracting the user’s private information. It’s crucial to verify any source of data you get online and the business profiles you engage with to avoid falling victim to scammers.
Be careful when clicking on suspicious links that may deposit viruses and other methods that steal credential information from your device. Further, turn off Facebook ads and be keen while sharing authorization codes you receive through email or text. Scammers use these codes to access your social media account when they know your phone number and name.
Increase the Security of Your Accounts
For safe internet use, you need to activate multi-factor authentication. You can turn on the two-factor authentication when using Facebook. This measure ensures you get a code emailed to you if you log in to your account through a different device for the first time.
MFA prevents unauthorized individuals from taking significant actions, such as changing your phone number or email address for password recovery.
Change Your Password Regularly
Among the good social media practices for seniors is always using a strong password for your profiles to reduce the risk of being hacked. Sometimes, we receive strange messages from people we know.
These messages include requests for financial help or false information about your loved one. This is often because their accounts have been hacked, and the hackers send the messages.
By updating your password to a strong one and signing out of all devices, you reduce the risk of cyber attackers accessing your accounts.
Avoid Sharing Private Information Online
Social media allows you to share information freely with people across the world. For instance, Facebook has online communities that older adults can join, including:
- Online discussion forums
- Book clubs
- Traveling groups
- Bible study groups
You must be cautious to maintain digital privacy for the elderly, especially when dealing with strangers. The more information you give out on social media, the more scammers learn ways of stealing from you.
Before accepting friend requests on Facebook, ensure you know the person. According to the Federal Trade Commission, cybercriminals use phishing tactics to pretend to be someone close and gain access to your private data.
Keep Your Social Media Profiles Private
A critical social media security tip is to set all your profiles private. This way, anyone wanting to follow or view your content must request your approval.
Privacy settings allow you to know who wants to view your content. Go through their profile to determine if it’s a person you know or a suspicious account.
If you come across any inappropriate, harmful, or offensive content, you need to report it to the social media platform administrators so that necessary action can be taken.
Advantages of Social Media for Older Adults
There are various pros to being part of social media for seniors. They include the following:
- Creating new friends from the comfort and safety of your home or an assisted living community
- Reconnecting with older friends and rekindling meaningful friendships
- Improving cognitive health by preventing depression and anxiety
- Reducing loneliness and isolation
Learn Good Social Media Practices for Seniors
It’s natural for friends and family members to worry about good social media practices for their loved ones, especially if they don’t live in the same house. By following the above online safety tips, older adults can enjoy the perks of being on social media while protecting their security and privacy.
Caruth Haven Court, Dallas, TX, is an assisted living community that enables seniors to lead the lifestyle they enjoy. Our professional staff work 24/7 and are dedicated to caring for our residents.
Contact us today for a tour of our community and to learn more about living options for yourself and your loved ones.
