After this reveal that a research firm Cambridge analytica collected data of 87 million users from the Facebook without prior approval or permission of account holders, question raised on social networks regarding their security system.
Question raised that why their security system isn’t much effective and efficient? Why data of the users has been collected or stolen from social networks and used in other purposes like Facebook user’s data used in 2016 presidential election system.
It has no doubt that data in social media except Google, is not safe and secure. Even you can’t keep your Facebook data safe and secure from any third party. Cambridge analytica is the best example of this subject wherein 87 million Facebook user’s data was collected from Facebook and used in US Presidential election 2016.
According to Whistleblower, Cambridge Analytica collected 50 million user’s data. After collecting this data, a software was developed that profiled these users to foresee the voting patterns. Bear in mind that 50 million figures were admitted by Facebook Administration and its owner, but it could be high up to 87 million.
In the instant article, we’ll learn that, as preemptive measures, how we can keep our Gmail data safe and secure from any third party. If any third party is using our data either with our approval or without prior permission, how we can stop the access of that third party to our Gmail data. This third party may include different apps, website, online service, online stores, social media sources etc.
What Google Account Data is shared
There are two platforms where we can share data on Google account. First of all, when you open a Gmail account, there Google asks us to provide following data.
- Date of Birth.
- A security question.
When you provide this data, you are asked to create your mail and password. This data is provided to Google and I guaranteed there is no risk, fear or any option and chance that your data can be provided to any third party or used for any purpose. In Google, your data is safe and secure.
2nd when we allow any third party to hire its service and give him access to our accounts basic information. This is risky and dangerous. When we open an app or any service i.e. Etsy, feedly etc, it request us to give access to basic account information like name, school name where you got education, date of birth and friends list etc.
Thus, third party app get accesses to your account with your permission, here they can see all information like name, email, address, country etc, but they can’t edit, modify or delete the data. However this basic data can be used for promotion of any product or for any other purposes.
Make Your Gmail Account Safe and Secure
Go to Apps Permission page of your Gmail to check that to how many apps you’ve given permission to access your data.
When I checked my Gmail account permission page, there five (05) apps were listed which I permitted and given access to my Gmail account basic information (these apps can only see information but can replace, remove, modify or delete any data). You can also check on your Gmail that to how many apps you’ve given permission to access your data.
However you can stop the access of all those apps to your account to keep your data safe and secure from any third party source. You can also stop those sites to share your data. Click on the app, You’ll find the “remove” button on the right hand side of those apps, click on “remove” button and remove that app. Thus, you can remove all apps or unwanted apps from your account following the same procedure.
Review Your Google+ Profile
After managing the apps on your Gmail Account, let review your Google profile. You can see that how much information you uploaded on your Gmail, which information is kept secret and which information is going to publicly visible.
If all information including phone number, school name, address and business address, and you want to keep it secret, simply click on “Hidden” button to hide all this information. You can also remove this information from your account.