Using Facebook Without Your Parents Finding Out
By xnotion
While I don't support hiding Facebook from your parents, I understand that some kids want to keep in touch with friends, despite their parents rules. I also know that sometimes parents make rules that they think will keep their kids safe, without understanding the underlying issue. It is unfair that some parents prevent their kids from using Facebook simply because it "sounds dangerous" and never discuss the issue with them besides saying "no." It is also in the nature of children to want to do these things, and, if they're going to, there might as well be a guide for how to do it.
First off, Facebook does not allow users under the age of 13 to sign up. So if you are under 13, this guide won't help you. Secondly, if your parents have a Facebook themselves, or if they are fairly knowledgeable with the internet, then this is a risky procedure. It isn't possible to be on Facebook without anyone being able to see it. For that reason, if you comment on a wall post of a friend who has their profile set to public, and your parents see it, they can see your name. While you could technically convince them that it is a different "John," the chances are slim.
- If you're in a different problem, and your parents friended you on Facebook, see what to do about that here.
- If you're a parent, and want to stop this, read about that here
- Want to know if Facebook will hurt your relationship with your boyfriend or girlfriend?
- If you're a little older, learn what your boss is seeing on Facebook that may cost you your job
If you are still willing to take the risk, this guide will make your account as secure as possible, so that your parents can search for you or see your profile. To begin, you have to log into Facebook. If you don't have one, sign up at facebook.com. Once there, you will want to go to the "Privacy Settings" page. Click "Account" at the top right, and then select "Privacy Settings."
The first thing we want to do is make sure that people you aren't friends with can't see you or search for you. Basically, if your parents wanted to find you on Facebook, they'd search for your name. Well, if you don't show up in the results, it would be harder to find you, right? So, on the Privacy Page, click on "View Settings" under the "Basic Directory Information" heading.
Now, you will see several entries. The first is "Search for me on Facebook." Change this to "Only Friends." A little warning here: once you do these steps, you aren't going to be getting any friend requests because people won't be able to find you. You will only be visible to your friends. Also change "Send me friend requests," "Send me messages," "See my friends list," "See my education and work," "See my current city and hometown," and "See my interests and other Pages" to "Only Friends." Basically, if you display your school name, the chances of you being able to say "That's not my profile" are gone. So you want to hide it from everyone who you don't specifically allow to see it (aka, friends).
Next, you want to make sure all the other settings are set to "Friends Only." Go back to the main Privacy Page and click on "Friends Only" as shown below.
Make sure you click "Apply These Settings." Also, uncheck the checkbox that says "Let friends of people tagged in my photos and posts see them."
The next thing to do is to make sure your friends don't share information about you that would reveal you are on Facebook. When they post photos, they will probably tag you. You don't want that because a tag shows that you are on Facebook. It's tough to do, but you need to make sure that you untag yourself from every picture they post. This is because you can't guarantee they have their photos set to private (which 90% of users don't). So if your parent were to browse their photos, and see your name under it as a tag, they could click it and link to your profile. To untag yourself, just go to your profile, and click on "Photos." Then, the first set of photos that appear are the ones your friends have posted and tagged you in. Click each one individually and untag yourself.
Once you untag yourself, there are a few more things you need to check. First, untag yourself from any posts your friends have made. (You know how you can type "@" and the person's name? Well that will show up and reveal that you have an account.) Just browse your wall for anything that looks like the picture below and click untag.
You will now want to ensure that your own photos are private by going to the "Photos" tab on your profile and clicking "Album Privacy" at the bottom.
Now, go through and make sure all of your albums including your profile pictures are set to Friends Only.
The last thing you want to do is to disable public searching for you. Remember earlier when we changed searching to only friends? Well, that was only for Facebook. People can still search for you on Google and see your basic profile. To change that, go back to the Privacy Page and click on "edit your settings" under "Applications and Websites" near the bottom left. Once there, change "Game and application activity" to only friends. Also, click edit settings next to "Info accessible through your friends" and uncheck everything.
Then, click edit settings next to "Public Search" and then uncheck the box on the next page. This will remove you from Google's and Yahoo's search results.
These steps will make your account "super private." But you still want to make sure you check your settings often and delete your browser history for total control. I am not responsible if your parents do find your Facebook account, and it is entirely possible they might. However, if you followed the steps here, the chances of them finding you are significantly lowered. Good luck, and try talking to them about it instead of hiding it!
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Comments
I would feel comfortable letting a teenager have a facebook account. I guess the most important thing as it always is, is to talk to your kids about the dangers of online predators and cyber bullying. If kids can't turn to their parents about important issues, then who can they turn to? Parents: open up the dialog with your kids.
Because of the fact that this guide can be used maliciously, and for the wrong purposes, I wrote this article: http://hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Find-Your-Childs-Fa that can help parents who feel their child is hiding a Facebook account.
Again, as the comments show, communication is key!
I'm gonna get one and lie about my age because I'm not old enough...
The first thing on my parents' Christmas list from me if permission to join Facebook!!
greatttttttttttttttt!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I love that!!! God.. I feel like my parents dont trust me, so got a facebook and I'm REALLY hoping they WILL NOT find out.. Crossing my fingers! :(
Ok, so my parentss wont let me qet a Facebook & i really want one what should i do cuz mi mom has a Facebook & she miqht catch me & mi brothers & sisters are way to over-protected cuz im tha littlest but what should i do cuz all mi friends have a facebook & i really want one but im only 11 what should i dooo HELP!
thats what i think what tha other qurl/quy sed that parents should let there kidz have a Facebook, but keep an i eye on there account who aqress?
I think theres nothing wrong with facebook I'm old enough to have it and my mam gets mad and makes me delete my account when she finds out i have it
I think theres nothing wrong with facebook I'm old enough to have it and my mam gets mad and makes me delete my account when she finds out i have it
i am 12, and ALL my friends have facebook. I feel sooo left out all the time, when they're saying: "Oh, did you see my comment on your profile i posted the other day", and " Add me to your account." I also get all these emails from people on facebook, asking me to join it, and i just keep having to say no!! i have MSN, but no one ever goes on that anymore, because they all have facebook. But the trouble is... i probably won't be allowed it when i'm 13 anyway...
I asked my parents for FB for my birthday...and they never gave me it. im even old enough. :/
i only want to hide my profile becuz my mom doesnt know im bi and im in a relationship with a girl and i jut dont want to get caught but at the same time i want to show my love for my gf
This was...................helpful. ;)
Hi can anyone help me my mom wont let me have fb and im in grade 9 and im 14 years old how can iget fb without her knowing she always searches my name on google to see if i have it so how do i keep my fb off google if i make one and also what are some ways she could find out i mean she doesnt have fb but im still scared shell find out what can i do someone please help ahahhaha i need fb everybody has it but me i only have stuid msn and nobody goes on that anymore and ive lost alot of frends from moves so i wanna get back in touch help
uhhhhh... we got a problem here... i was trying to set who can search for me to only friends, but the only option is everyone. PLZ HELP! %Pr
my mom wont let me have facebook just because she things there r BAD PEOPLE ON FACEBOOK i want to talk to my friends on facebook
my mom wont let me get a fb... she thinks that i wil get bullied on face book... i dont want to make a secret account but i need to talk to my friends and they always rub it in my face that they have a facebook. people even call me a pathetic loser cuz my mom wont let me get a fb... i even told my mom about the safety policies and she still says NO!!! what should i do!?!?!?!
I know what all of yalla are talking about..iam 13 and my parents wil not let me have a facebook..i just wish that they woul let me...):i tried to tell them that they can check my messages and everything..they could have my password..but they still will not let meee..wha should i do ..i do not want to secretly want to make one without permission and then get caught and nevver be allowd to have a facebook..all of my friendss have one why cant i??????its soooo.... not fair...my step-mom has one tooo...but not me...i am a lonley LOSER that noene can talk to cause i cant have a facebook....well i have tried everything..nothing workss
im 14 and in the 9th grade and my dads a cop and my moms very over protective so OBVIOUSLY they wont let me get a fb and if i do try to and hide it my dad will find a way to hack into my computer and find out, but imm thinking of wats the worst that culd happen right?....ugh all my friends even the over protected ones have fb and im not even kidding the only one that doesnt have one cuz of my parents...girr
im almost fortteen and ive asked 3 times a few months apart and the answer is always no ure not ready. however my 12 year old cosin has one.
THANKS but can you write like how to make it without them see ing i know you
Me too guys! I mean i feel like my mom doesn't trust me... my dad will let me have one but my mom wont because she thinks its not a place for me (whatever that means) but its not like im gonna do anything bad on there? I just wantto talk to my friends.. But i think one of the reasons i can't have one is because i allready made one without askinng, and my mom found outt because my friends comeup to me and are likke " Paiiiigeeeeeee you got a faceboookkkk!!!!!!" im likkke ugghhh! and then my mom made me erase it...but i dont get it my 14 year old brother made one about a year ago and im 13 and i made one likke 2 months agoo, its just unaiir!!! So anywayss this is a badd ideaa causeyour friends will be likkke you got one!! yay!!
To help yall out, this is just an idea.... but you could maake up a name like say your name is Jena Carmax.. you could putyour namee as something totally different for example Haley Barlow and just tell yourfriends at school that your "Haley" ...
I am 13 but my parents wont let me have a facebook everyone in my class has one but me and i feel left out i dont know if i should make one my friends said i should but i am really scared the my mom will find out cuz she has a fb and already accuses me of having one when i dont.
OMG my mom will not let me have a Facebook I am 13 and she won't let me have one I want one just to talk to friends everyone has one and my boyfriend has one and he doesn't have a phone so he uses faceb
you forgot about blocking people!!! lol but u got most of it right
ok so i am also 14 in the 9th grade....i will be 15 in january and my mom wont let me have a facebook unlike all my other friends.i feel so left out when they talk about facebook at school because i cant join in the conversation because i have no idea what they are talking about....even my cousins that are in middle school(yeahh younger than me) have a facebook account. i mean i dont understand why i cant have one....they do have safety settings so i can make my page private to only friends and i would give her the password so she wont think im using it inappropriately!!! PLEASE HELP ME
i agree with secret (i think the post is # 4
I already posted something but just going to say our parents won't let us have a Facebook and we don't want our parents finding out but I bet if we make one without our parents knowing we would be like omg I should made one a long time ago cuz it's no as scaring as I thought it would be
i am almost 14 and im the only girl in my half of the year who doesnt have fb. i was promised i could have it when im the legal age ...... guess what?? its 7 months later and my mum emphasis on mum keeps on delaying it until she had a reason to not let me have it. my dad is all for it. i was tolled in class today tht without fb u don't have a proper social life. i can never join in conversations cause there all about fb. i'm isolated in school i was tolled tht i was not at schol to socialize but how am i ment to enjoy school when i have no friends?? it sometimes feels like my bf who has fb mocks me for not having it. all i wanted was to fit in at school and i cant
I don't have a fb because my mom just gave me permission if i friended her but she said she wanted to help me make it and she keeps putting it off!!! ugh...
i am very sad because i dont have a facebook acount
Lol why not just block the parents and parents' friends?
I want facebook soooooo bad but i cant cuz apperently im too young(im almost 13) and ill have nothing to post -.- my dad says ohh wat u gonna post i have to take a shit!? -.-
I want a FB but my mom thinks there are bad people on there o dont get it i want a FB so bad HELP
I want a facebook so bad!!!!!!!! but my parents are over protected and all my friends have one and there like 11 and 10 but still i want one!!!!!!!:(
I said to my parents mom dad i think im responsible enough im like what the hek!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Im just so mad and my parents have one my friends my cousins all of my family members have one but me im so p.o.ed.
im sooooooooo annoyed cos i turned 13 and my parents still wont frikin let me have facebook! i got an account and then i deactivated it cos i was too scared theyd find out but ill probs giv it another go...
is there any way u can just make it so that ur parents cant see you on fb and every1 else can???
my [arents are stupid and over protective and they wont let me have a facebook. i want to make one because neither of my parents have one but im scared tht when my friends are over they will bring it up and my mom will find out. i am almost 13 and most of my friends had facebooks since they were like 9 or 10!!!! i try to tell my mom there are privacy settings and that i can block people and tht i will let her see all of my pics,posts, and messages but she is annoying and still says no anyway. i just want to be able to be in conversations in school instead of just sitting there listening like a retard because i have no idea what they are talking about!!!!! and my cousin is always telling me tht nobody knows who i am if i dont have a facebook!!! and i always just get soo mad at my mom because its not even that big of a deal but apparently for some stupid reason its important to her!!!! grrrrrrrrrrr
I just deactivated my account because I was sick and tired of my mom creeping on every status I made and making me delete all my 'bad' posts.....ugh but that's helpful!!
i know i feel ya i know what your talking about
Ahh thanks a bunch for this! Well done for all the hard work! My parents won't let me have FB until I'm 16! I find it really stupid, the age limit is only 13! So, now that I've reached 13, I am secretly going on FB!
I had a fb but it got dealeted and my mom wont let me have another one grrrr what do i do this is so umfair
my mom wont let me get one either! its soooooo annoying. im working on being an angel child :) when shes around but she still wont talk about it! SO ANNOYING! every single one of my friends has one which is sooooooooooooooo mean of her!
People...Aduluts...
Adults...go stalk someone else thats wants to be not your kid. And...as a side comment if you speak like this " y wonnt my mum let mi have a fb " Well...then your either horrible at spelling or want to act like a kid, and if your going act like one well, no wonder your being controlled. Oh and parents REALLY cant do much to you if you don't listen.
Thanks :)
And Yeah Im very scarcastic but, have a high GPA,Do Sports, and don't like being watch/stalked.
Hey There, Always Repsect what your parents do for you, if they dont agree, it would be for the right, theres always a time and a location for everything, when i was around 13 i would just pick up my guitar and sing my heart out. Never Say Never xo
My parents grounded me. I'm home schooled so being grounded means no seeing civilization until my parents decide to let me leave the house without calling the cops to bring me home. They hacked my account, changed my password, and changed the main email to THEIR email. They couldn't just delete the account? No they had to change it so that they're in complete control of it so they can see what my friends are messaging me and whatnot. In other words, this is a lost cause for me. There is no hiding my Facebook T,T
thanks . and this is very useful. it worked.i just love this solution
Im 11 and I need fb!!! I'm in so much indesicion on whether to get it.... Plz help!
I'm 12, but I asked my mom if I could have a Facebook and she said, "Noo," She even had a whole week to think about and she has one.. I was only going to be friends with my friends and family... I don't see what the big deal is... I'm gonna get my dad to talk to her bc my parents are divorced..
I'm 13 but my parents won't let me have one ;( they say I don't need one but they have one and they know all my friends have one they have even friended all my friends! Why won't they let me have one? What should I do?
it eucks
uh it is not fair that i don't have a Facebook all my friends have one and my family members. even my cuz that is 8 has a Facebook it is not fair i wish we could also i told my mom that i will only friend my family members and friends and that she could look what im doing but she said no bc im to young and my other cuz has a myspace it is not fair what shpuld i do
my parents are so unfair. they know how responsible i am and they know i wont do any thing bad but im on this website instead of facebook because my parents wont let me have one :(
my mother don't want me to have a facebook but my little cus got one and i mad like hello thats ain't fair and she know i probable want she her one more
IAM 11 and my mum and dad said no to fb and I felt like saying f u k u even now IM not aloud to swear and 1 time I made 1 using my BFFS email name and my name was Kim Catchlove and something happed and it stop And it pissed me off
My mum nd dad will not let me have facebook! all they say is no and then ignore me. even though i say i will keep my settings private, only add my friends i know (even all my friends want me to get facebook). my dad says its just something that causes trouble!!!! he let me have msn which is almost exacly the same as fb but wont let me have it! Any tips on what to say to persuade them!!!!!!?????????
That was not helpful well just a little but I needa find my phone my my hid it
Mom hid it
I still ask them and they say no!!!!!!
Well I found out that I am not the only 14 year old without FB. Parents are so over protective.
And also, it's unfair for us teens to not have FB. It's like having nothing, not even a heart.
my parents dont know n my mmum has fb too so this really heped ..
Will you tweens shut up? It's not so great and unless you don't have a phone and need to communicate with people on a daily and non-social driven basis, I see no reason for you to have either.
Useful for grown up children as well!
I'm 37 and I blocked my mom from seeing my general posts on FB because she was lurking on my page looking at my status updates. My mom believes she should know everything before the world does or uses it to criticize my lifestyle by minutia. She legit "lost her s--t" when I posted on FB that I had gotten a job offer on the spot with Delta Airlines after going up to Atlanta for an interview before calling her immediately (nevermind I called my wife first because she should be the first to know).
Some parents have a bloated sense of self-worth when it comes to their child's social network no matter how old they are. I think it's fair that a person should protect themselves from parents being more nazi than parent.
I am known as the goody to shoes around my town. I am scared to do things like that cuz ill get punished. All my mom says when I bring up the issue, is no and don't bring it up again I mean it!! I don't know how to talk to her.
I've been wanting a Facebook for 2 years (14) and is it going to happen... guess not.
I tried this and it worked. But I didn't want to take the risk so I deleted my account. I had this for two weeks and my mum was only on two days in that time so I don't know how well this would work. Good luck to everyone who tries this. Time for some X-BOX.……………. ;)
Ive had facebook for over a year now and like just today my friends parents were checking her facebook and saw that i had facebook. She told me that there's a chance they could my parents and that would be the end of the world for me. So i did what i could and deactivated my account and blocked this friend just to play it safe. Im even more worried on how to lie to my parents if they get told this. :/
Just try to convince them it is someone else if your parents get told. Works for me with everything. ;)
Although I did not try it with Facebook m. I shall try that soon. ;)
Just think to facebook with friends without family finding!!!!!!!!!!!!! thats horrible. Our family can still find us. Father or mother must mad of this Facebook. I better do this with my cousin only. :)
can't you just put a fake name on it the tell ur friends that is you just dont put obvious things so you parents know it is you and tell your friends not to pics of you and make sure that they are not friends with your parents and make sure they are someone you can trust (simple)
alyica jones that is actually a very good idea. Can't believe I didn't think of it ????
I made a facebook account and my parents don't know about it, until my dad friended me? I do not know if he knows who I am. I haven't talks to him in a while. What do I do?
I think 21 months ago
Hey I think perents should let there kids have facebook
But they should keep an eye on there account
So that is wat I think anyway!!!!