Where to find Facebook's privacy controls
Facebook's privacy settings live in two places: your account settings and individual post controls. The fastest route is the menu in the top right corner of Facebook — click the downward arrow, then select Settings and privacy, then Settings. From there, click Privacy in the left sidebar. This page controls who can see your profile, send you messages, and look up your account by phone number or email.
You can also control privacy post-by-post. When you create a post, click the audience selector (it shows a globe, friends icon, or lock) before you publish. This lets you choose whether that single post goes to everyone, friends only, specific people, or just yourself. Posts you made years ago keep their original audience setting unless you change them individually.
The privacy settings page also includes controls for search engines, apps you've connected to Facebook, and who can see your friends list. Each section has its own toggle or dropdown menu.
Key Takeaways
- Your main privacy controls are in Settings > Privacy, where you set who can see your profile and contact you.
- Each post has its own audience selector that overrides your default setting, so you can share some things with friends only and others with no one.
- Search engines can index your public profile unless you turn that off in the privacy settings.
- Apps and websites you've connected to Facebook can access your data — review and remove them in the Apps and Websites section.
Controlling who sees your profile and posts
In the Privacy section, the first setting is Who can see your posts. Your options are Public (anyone on or off Facebook), Friends, Friends except, or Specific people. If you choose Friends, only people you've accepted as friends can see new posts. If you choose Specific people, you type in names and only those people see the post.
Below that is Who can contact you. This controls whether strangers can message you. If you set it to Friends, only people on your friends list can send you messages. If you set it to Everyone, anyone can message you, though messages from non-friends may land in a separate folder.
The Who can see your friends list setting determines whether people visiting your profile can see who you're connected to. You can make it visible to everyone, friends only, or private (visible only to you).
Limiting what search engines and apps can see
Facebook lets search engines like Google index your public profile by default. If you don't want your profile showing up in Google search results, go to Settings > Privacy and turn off Do you want search engines outside of Facebook to link to your profile? This doesn't hide your profile from Facebook users — it only stops Google and other search engines from indexing it.
Apps and websites you've used to log in with Facebook can access your data. To see what's connected, go to Settings > Apps and Websites. You'll see a list of every app or site that has permission to read your information. Click on any one to see what data it can access, then click Remove if you no longer use it or don't want it reading your data.
Some apps ask for permission to post on your behalf or access your friends list. Removing an app cuts off all of those permissions at once.
Controlling who can look you up
Facebook has settings that let people find your account using your phone number or email address. In Settings > Privacy, look for Who can look you up using the phone number you provided? and Who can look you up using the email address you provided? You can set each one to Everyone, Friends of friends, Friends only, or Only me.
If you set these to Only me, people won't be able to find your account by searching your phone number or email in Facebook's search bar. They can still find you if they know your name, but this stops accidental discovery through contact information.
Managing old posts and past activity
Facebook's Limit Past Posts tool changes the audience of all your old posts at once. Go to Settings > Privacy and click Limit Past Posts. This changes every post you made before that moment to Friends only. Posts you make after clicking it keep whatever audience you choose for each one.
This tool doesn't delete old posts — it just changes who can see them. If you want to delete specific posts, you have to do that one at a time. Click the three dots on any post and select Delete.
Your activity status (whether you're currently online) is also controllable. Go to Settings > Privacy and find Who can see your active status. You can let everyone see it, only friends, or turn it off entirely so no one knows when you're online.
Protecting your account from unauthorized access
Beyond audience settings, Facebook has security features that protect your account itself. In Settings > Security and login, you can see where you're logged in and end sessions on devices you no longer use. This is useful if you've used Facebook on a friend's phone or a public computer.
You can also set up two-factor authentication, which requires a code from your phone when you log in from a new device. Go to Settings > Security and login and select Two-factor authentication. Facebook can send the code by text message or through an authenticator app.
If you've connected your phone number to your account, Facebook can use it to help you recover your account if you forget your password. You can also add a backup email address in the same section.
What happens when you change privacy settings
When you change a privacy setting, it takes effect when ready for new posts and activity. Old posts keep their original audience unless you use the Limit Past Posts tool or change them individually. If you make your profile private after sharing something publicly, that post doesn't disappear from the internet — people who saw it or shared it can still access it elsewhere.
Removing an app or website from your connected apps list stops it from accessing your data going forward, but it doesn't delete data the app already collected. If you're concerned about data a third-party app already has, you may need to contact that company directly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make my Facebook profile completely private?
You can make your profile very restricted, but not completely invisible to Facebook itself. Set your posts to Friends only, your friends list to private, and turn off search engine indexing. People who aren't your friends won't see your posts or profile details, but Facebook still collects data about your activity for its own use.
If I delete a post, can people still see it?
Once you delete a post from your profile, it no longer appears there. However, if someone shared it or took a screenshot before you deleted it, they still have a copy. Deleting only removes it from your timeline.
What does "Friends except" mean?
Friends except lets you post to all your friends except specific people you name. It's useful if you want to share something with most friends but exclude one or two. You type in the names of people to exclude when you create the post.
Do privacy settings stop Facebook from collecting my data?
No. Privacy settings control who else can see your information, not what Facebook collects about you. Facebook tracks your activity, location, and behavior regardless of your privacy settings. If you want to limit data collection itself, you can adjust ad preferences and off-Facebook activity tracking in Settings > Apps and Websites.
If I turn off my active status, can people still message me?
Yes. Turning off active status only hides whether you're currently online — it doesn't affect messaging. People can still send you messages; they just won't see a green dot next to your name indicating you're active.