Online Privacy

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I'm starting to become much more aware about online privacy. I was shocked to discover very recently that if you searched my name into google you could find my facebook page and my youtube account and a host of other information about what I'm interested in and the music I'm listening to etc. I'm thinking about making my online presence much more anonymous. I've started by making my facebook account much more secure and deleting my twitter account.

I was just wondering what do you guys do to safeguard your online privacy? I understand there's a number of you here very knowledgeable about computers and that type of thing. So how far do you guys go to remain more anonymous online?
Do any of you use proxies and things like that?

I know there's a fine line between privacy and paranoia here but I want to remain much more anonymous online which I think is reasonable. I don't want in the future when I apply for jobs for employers to be able to find out a lot about me online etc etc.

so yeah.. I'd appreciate any responses

There are many experts here, you're in the right place.

I had a similar revelation a couple of years ago...

Check if you are profiled on Spokeo, Pipl, 192.com etc. If so, request that they remove your info (good luck with getting a response).

Delete any accounts that are in your real name, or change the account name to an alias (ESPECIALLY on Facebook).

Delete any photos of yourself you've uploaded anywhere if the account they're uploaded to is in your real name.

Use a unique username for every site.

Have multiple email addresses. One for forum registrations, one for personal correspondence, one for shopping etc. OK maybe not that excessive but at least have more than ONE and don't make your Paypal and bank email address the same as your Facebook or forum email address etc.

Have unique complex passwords everywhere. Otherwise, if you use the same one everywhere, and a hacker gets it, they have access to ALL your accounts. Not good.

Don't know which country you're in, but if you're in the UK, DO NOT fill in census forms or electoral roll forms unless you want all your info to be uploaded onto 192.com and your address and telephone number (and previous addresses) to be viewable by anyone in the world who types in your name. Ticking the box that says "keep my info confidential" doesn't work. They're lying. The councils still sell your info to 192.com.

Sites like this give people's name, age, and city/state for free. And a lot more if you pay a fee.

USA People Search

Facebook and Google are the main dangers for the freedom of the internet.
Both are collecting nearly everything.
I hate the peer pressure to join facebook. When there is pressure to join something it is against your freedom.
In my school class are 29 people. 28 of them had a facebook account. I not. And the others made there important things for our class society.
I hate the "Like" Button, because this Button is collecting informations about you, even when you have not a facebook account.

Google is also collecting much.
I think that not so much persons are using useful alternatives as search engines (I could recommend Ixquick, Startpage and DuckDuckGo)
When you search with Bing, Microsoft get informations about you. I dislike also the monopolist Microsoft.
Also I don't know alternatives to Youtube to find good videos.

Does anybody want to have a Internet totaly controlled by corporations?

(Sorry for my English when there are some mistakes, I speak German)