Venmo, the popular mobile payment app, is not just for sending money anymore. It has become a tool for snooping on your friends, family, and colleagues to find out about their personal lives. But what many users don’t realize is that Venmo is also leaking sensitive information about them to the public. In fact, my own contacts list, which includes the names of people in my phone book, was published on Venmo without my knowledge.
Venmo was founded in 2009 as a music start-up, but it quickly evolved into a mobile wallet service that allowed users to share their payment transactions on a public timeline. At the time, social networking was still new and exciting, and sharing personal information online was seen as cutting edge. However, we have since learned the dangers of oversharing, as stalkers, employers, and data brokers can use this information to track our activities and target us.
Although Venmo has made some efforts to improve privacy, critics argue that it still falls short. By default, transactions on Venmo are still set to public, meaning that anyone can see when you receive or make a payment unless you manually change the settings. This information, such as the dollar amount, time, and date of the transaction, can reveal patterns about your personal life and relationships.
In order to protect your privacy on Venmo, it is important to review and adjust your settings. You can make your transactions private by going to the Me tab, tapping the settings icon, and selecting Privacy. Under default privacy settings, choose Private. Additionally, you should go to the “More” section in Privacy and click on “Past Transactions” to ensure that all past transactions are set to private.
Another privacy concern with Venmo is the visibility of your contacts list. By default, Venmo allows other users to view your contacts list, which can reveal personal information about your relationships. To hide your contacts list from public view, go to the privacy settings, click on Friends List, and select Private. You should also turn off the option to appear in other users’ friends lists.
It is also important to regularly review the settings on all of your apps and internet accounts. Technology companies often change their data-sharing features over time, so it is a good idea to check for any updates or changes in privacy settings. By taking these steps, you can safeguard your privacy and ensure that your personal information is not being exposed on Venmo or any other app.
In conclusion, while Venmo may be a convenient way to send and receive money, it is important to be aware of its privacy issues. By adjusting your settings and being mindful of what information you share, you can protect yourself and your personal data from being exposed.
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