Some members have expressed concerns over seeing their posts show up on Google. This is due to the fact that TuDiabetes is an open social network, meaning that contributions posted on the Forum are visible to others outside the network. Photos and blog posts can be set to be visible only to your friends, but Forum posts/replies are visible to everyone (members or not): this is why we talk about this on our Terms of Use, under "Use Common Sense".

So, what's to do to protect your identity (in case you are concerned about potential repercusions -having others learn about your diabetes, etc.)?

• Your profile page can be set to be only visible to your Friends, if you want. To do this, change your privacy settings.
• Do not post your personal info (email address, mailing address, etc.) on the site. Private messages are best for sending this kind of information when/if you feel comfortable sharing it with another member.
• Do not use your full name on the site. If you have added your first and last name as part of your profile, you can change it by clicking on the "Settings" link on the right side (below your name). When you get to the My Settings page, you can change your Full Name to anything you want (removing your last name will do) and click on the "Save" button at the bottom of the page.
  

 

• Last, you can change the URL of your profile page, which may contain traces of your last name. To do so, from the My Settings page, click on the "My Page" link on the left side of the page. You will be able to change the address field, as shown on the image below. Make sure to click on the "Save" button when you are done:

Doing all these things will help ensure that your forum posts remain Google-safe. Even if they are indexed by Google (they will likely appear on Google), they will not be traceable back to you (under your first and last name), if this is a concern you have.

If you have any other privacy-related questions, please send them to privacy AT diabeteshf DOT org.

Additional resources about online privacy

• EFF's Top 12 Ways to Protect Your Online Privacy
• How to Protect Your Privacy on Facebook, MySpace, and LinkedIn
• Five ways to protect your privacy online