Every time you surf the web, post on social media, shop online, or even use an app on your phone, you make a trail. This trail is your digital footprint, and whether you’re aware of it or not, or busy trying to keep it in check, your footprint is having an impact on your privacy, your reputation, and your opportunities in life.
Understanding what is a digital footprint is essential for managing your online identity.
This post will help you understand what a digital footprint is, the types, and what impact it might have on you, both good and bad, and how to manage and protect it.
The Digital Footprint Explained
What Is a Digital Footprint?
What is a digital footprint? The digital footprint is the trace information generated when we access the web or use our devices. That’s pretty much anything associated with your online presence: the websites you browse, the social media status updates you post, the things you buy online, or even the things you’ve searched for with Google.
There are two primary types of digital footprints:
Active Digital Footprint
This is your data when you want to share it. For instance, posts or comments on social networks, the completion of online forms, and newsletter subscriptions.
Passive Digital Footprint
This is the stuff you leave behind inadvertently — information about your browser history, your location or how much time you spend on a webpage.
Where Your Digital Footprint Comes From
You are also continually increasing your digital shoe size no matter what you do. Some examples include:
- Logging into online accounts
- Social media uploading (pictures, videos, and tagging)
- Online retail (buying history and payment history)
- Streaming videos and music
- Interactions in the virtual community or forum
- Keywords and search result clicks
In learning what is a digital footprint, it becomes clear how seemingly simple actions generate lasting data.
And while some of it may seem benign, much of this data gets recorded, saved and occasionally shared across services with effects that may surprise you.
Why You Need to Worry About Your Digital Footprint
Your digital footprint does matter for one simple reason: It represents your online identity. It can be used — and is being used — to build a profile about you. Here’s why this matters:
Privacy
Your digital footprint often reveals a lot about you. Data hacks can leave this information open, which can in turn can open up to identity theft or fraud. Even mundane tasks, like logging in to a poorly secured site, can put your data at risk.
Reputation
(What you say online — everything from snarky comments to iffy photos — becomes part of your public self.) The first impression is your digital footprint. When people Google you, like prospective employers or clients, your digital footprint is often the first impression they get.
Targeted Advertising
Have you ever wondered why ads appear to “follow” you after visiting a website? That’s because companies are using your data to serve up personalized ads based on your browsing behavior. Convenient, yes, but it also begs the question of how well companies know you.
Opportunities or Risks
An exceptional online reputation, that is clean and professional, can bring your tremendous career opportunities and partnerships. On the other hand, an unmanaged or questionable digital footprint might slam doors or damage your reputation.
The Pros & Cons of Having a Digital Footprint
Not all of your digital footprint has to be doom and gloom. It can be both good and bad.
Pros of a Digital Footprint
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Ease: Makes it easy to tailor to individual preferences (like what Netflix or Spotify does for recommendations).
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Professional Visibility: A LinkedIn profile or some kind of online portfolio where an employer or client can find you.
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Your footprint places you in contact as you share common interests in social or business groups.
Cons of a Digital Footprint
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Privacy Problems: Information collected by companies and websites can be held indefinitely or shared.
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Cybersecurity Risks: Hackers can use your information to hack into your accounts without your permission.
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Reputation Loss: Old posts or comments can come back and damage your reputation.
How to Manage and Protect Your Digital Footprint
The good news, however, is that you can actively manage your digital footprint to help safeguard your privacy and show your very best self online. Here are six practical steps:
1. Google Yourself Regularly
Google your name to see what comes up. If you see something old or bad, do something about it, such as asking a website administrator to take it down or updating your profiles.
2. Adjust Privacy Settings
Almost all websites and social media sites have privacy settings. Restrict who can view your posts, location or personal information. Be sure to always read a site’s privacy policy and permissions before signing up for a new service.
3. Think Before You Post
Before posting something online, ask yourself, “Would I be comfortable if this were read publicly or by someone important?” DO NOT put up personal information or inflammatory ideas that could compromise your integrity.
4. Strong Password and Two-Factor Authentication
Most importantly, use strong passwords and two-factor authentication. Use long, unique, complex passwords on all your important accounts so that if someone hacks them, you minimize the chances that stolen data can be used anywhere else. For enhanced security, enable two-factor authentication (2FA) for your logins.
5. Clean Up Old Accounts
Do you have an old MySpace account or a blog from your teenage years? Remove old accounts and dated content that no longer represent your current image or safety.
6. Be Wary of Free Wi-Fi Networks and Mysterious Links
Since you shouldn’t be doing anything sensitive over public Wi-Fi, you’re all good. Be cautious of clicking URLs that appear without request in emails or even messages, since they may go to phishing attacks.
Creating a Positive Presence Online
The road to establishing a desirable online presence begins here:
Create Professional Profiles
Leverage platforms such as LinkedIn to boost your professional experience, skills, and accomplishments. Consider it your online resume.
Share Value-Adding Content
Post useful, relevant, and interesting content that adds credibility to your niche or industry on social media, blogs, or in groups and forums.
Support Campaigns and Causes
Take part in the things you love. It demonstrates that you’re active and creates a more complete online image.
Conclusion About Your Digital Footprint
Your online footprint is like a mirror, and it shows the interactions and the activities that you participated in on your online life. It can be an asset or a liability based on how you handle it.
By knowing what makes up your digital footprint and planning ahead to monitor and protect it, you turn your online presence into one of the most effective tools for growth, safety, and unity.
So, if you’ve ever asked yourself what is a digital footprint, remember — your footprint is up to you. Begin to mold it wisely now!
Learn more about: How to Erase Digital Footprint in the First Place
