Facebook privacy settings control who sees your posts, photos, and profile information

Facebook lets you decide what you share with everyone, friends only, or specific people. The settings are scattered across several menus, so most people miss them. You can change who sees your current posts, hide past posts from public view, limit who can contact you, and control what information appears on your profile.

Start in the menu at the top right of Facebook (the three horizontal lines on mobile, or the downward arrow on desktop). Go to Settings and Privacy, then Settings. From there, you'll find Privacy in the left sidebar. This is where most of your control lives.

Key Takeaways

  • Your main privacy controls are in Settings and Privacy > Settings > Privacy, where you set who sees your posts and who can contact you.
  • You can change who sees a single post after you've posted it by clicking the audience button (the globe or people icon) on that post.
  • The "Who can look you up?" section lets you block search engines from indexing your profile and control whether people can find you by email or phone number.
  • Past posts can be hidden from public view all at once using the "Limit Past Posts" button, though this does not delete them.
  • Facebook's default settings share more than most people realize, so checking these boxes takes 10 minutes and prevents data brokers from easily finding your information.

Change who sees your new posts

When you create a post, Facebook shows an audience button before you hit Share. On desktop, this button shows a globe (public), people (friends), or a lock (private). On mobile, it shows similar icons. Click that button to change who sees that specific post before you post it.

If you want all your future posts to go to friends only instead of public, go to Settings > Privacy > Who can see your posts? and select Friends. This sets the default for new posts, but does not change posts you've already made public.

Hide all your old public posts at once

Facebook has a "Limit Past Posts" button that hides everything you posted publicly before you change your settings. Go to Settings > Privacy > Limit Past Posts. Click the button and confirm. This changes the audience on all your old public posts to friends only, but does not delete them.

This is useful if you posted freely for years and now want to tighten up. The posts still exist in your archive and your friends can still see them, but they disappear from public search and from people who aren't your friends.

Control who can contact you and send friend requests

Go to Settings > Privacy > Who can send you friend requests? You can choose Everyone or Friends of Friends. Choosing Friends of Friends cuts down on spam and contact from strangers.

For messages, go to Settings > Privacy > Who can message you? You can allow messages from Everyone, Friends, or Friends of Friends. If you choose Friends of Friends or Friends, messages from others go to a separate "Message Requests" folder that you can ignore. You won't get notifications for them.

Stop search engines from finding your profile

Go to Settings > Privacy > Do you want search engines outside of Facebook to link to your profile? Uncheck this box. When it's unchecked, Google and other search engines cannot index your Facebook profile, so searching your name won't pull up your Facebook page in search results.

This is one of the most important settings for keeping your information away from data brokers. Many brokers scrape public Facebook profiles and sell the data. If your profile isn't indexed by search engines, it's harder for them to find.

Limit who can see your friends list and profile details

Go to Settings > Privacy > Who can see your friends list? Choose Friends or Only Me. If you choose Only Me, no one can see who your friends are, which also makes it harder for brokers to build a network map of your connections.

You can also control who sees specific information on your profile. Go to your profile, click the three dots next to your cover photo, and select Edit Profile. Next to each section (About, Photos, Friends), you'll see an audience button. Click it to change who sees that section. Set sensitive information like your phone number, email, or birthday to Friends or Only Me.

Review apps and websites connected to your account

Go to Settings > Apps and Websites. This shows every app and website that can access your Facebook data. Remove any you don't recognize or no longer use. Each one you remove is one fewer place your information can leak.

Check this list every few months. Apps you signed up for years ago and forgot about might still have permission to see your friends list, email, or other details. Removing them doesn't delete your account on those services — it just cuts off their access to your Facebook data.

Frequently Asked Questions

If I change my privacy settings, does Facebook delete my old posts?

No. Changing privacy settings only changes who can see your posts going forward or hides old public posts from public view. The posts still exist on Facebook's servers and your friends can still see them. If you want to delete a post entirely, you have to delete it individually or contact Facebook to request permanent deletion of your account.

Will hiding my profile from search engines stop data brokers from finding me?

It makes it much harder, but not impossible. Data brokers use multiple sources — public records, voter registration, phone directories, and old website archives. Hiding your Facebook profile removes one major source, but you may still appear on other sites. Combine this with removing your information from data broker websites directly for better protection.

Can I make my profile completely private so only I can see it?

You can set most things to "Only Me," but Facebook requires some information to be visible to at least your friends — like your name and profile picture. If you want maximum privacy, consider deactivating your account instead. Deactivated accounts are hidden from search and from other users, though Facebook keeps your data.

What happens if I limit who can message me?

Messages from people outside your chosen group go to Message Requests instead of your main inbox. You won't see notifications for them unless you check that folder. You can still read and reply to them, but they won't interrupt you. This is useful for blocking spam without blocking the person entirely.

Do I need to change these settings on mobile and desktop separately?

No. Privacy settings sync across all devices. If you change a setting on your phone, it applies to your desktop account too. You only need to change each setting once.