Ever worried that someone else might access your Facebook account?
Facebook helps with this – as well as Google, PayPal and plenty of other platforms, Facebook can send alerts any time there’s a new login, and there are various versions of device management that will list all the devices that have accessed your account.
But how many users skip by these tools, if they even know they exist?
On Wednesday, Facebook released a new feature that takes its security tools and puts them directly in front of users’ faces, so skipping them or being oblivious to the tools is all that much harder.
The new tool, which is just a test at this point and has only been rolled out to some users, is called Security Checkup, as Facebook said in its official post.
Those who see the test appear on their News Feed will be able to change their passwords, turn on login alerts, and clean up login sessions simply by clicking through the screen prompts.
The Security Checkup will appear over the top of Facebook’s site and will prompt users to explore various options to increase their security.
Then, Facebook will walk users through password security options and show the various gadgets that are logged into different Facebook services.
That should make it pretty easy to spot somebody who’s logging onto your Facebook services without your say-so.
None of these security options are new, mind you.
The tools are available to all Facebook users, but Security Checkup’s purpose is to make them much harder to miss.
Depending on feedback, Facebook is hoping to make the new feature available more broadly and whenever users want to access it.
It might be just a slight tweak, but – much like the privacy dinosaur – anything that gets security options out of the dark backrooms of drop-down menus and into the light of day, right under our noses, sounds like a good move!
If Facebook’s selected you to test the new feature, please do let us know what you think of it in the comments section below.
Image of Facebook courtesy of Twin Design / Shutterstock.
Anonymous
No way am i giving FB my phone number… They are privacy thieves themselves!
Dillon Nemia
So you think that they couldn’t get your phone # by other means?…
Chris
Oh don’t worry, they already have it.
Bethany Spielman
I hate it! I was scared I was in Facebook jail again. :( Now I’m paranoid that my account was hacked so changing my password just in case!
Mk Rahat
I always posted good picture and instruction. What’s reason stop my Facebook account?
Lora Inman
I can’t remember original password and cannot get through security check and there is no way to call them to log back on! Help!!! Suggestions?
William Dorsey
What I am getting is forced to enter a CAPCHA before I can share mere articles to my page. My privacy setting is Public, so maybe their algorithm needs to be tweaked to distinguish between an advertisement or an article from a news site. It is a complete hemorrhoid.
Karen Jeffery
I hate this security check idea. I don’t want to put my phone number on Facebook. That is my choice. I don’t like the idea of been forced to do something like this. Take the feature off please. I’m capable of making my own decisions and don’t need a net nanny making decisions for me.
John Bicknell
I dont trust this security check first it says they will send a six diget code when you use it it asks you for a picture of yourself how do i know this is not the havker wanting to clone my account