Part II of the “LinkedIn Privacy Series” from PrivacyMatters2u & SummerSnow Publications

Summary: Want to stay safe on LinkedIn? Learn how to protect your profile, stop data tracking, and avoid scams with these 5 essential LinkedIn privacy tips.

LinkedIn is a great networking tool, and many of us have benefited from its ability to connect us to meaningful jobs and excellent opportunities, but is LinkedIn safe?

Um, nope. Not as safe as you think.

If you use LinkedIn for networking or job searching, your profile may be putting you and your contacts at risk.

Why LinkedIn Is a Gold Mine for Scammers

LinkedIn is a one stop shop for scammers, impersonators, and data harvesters. As the only major social platform where users are encouraged to share real names, job titles, work histories, career goals and contact info, LinkedIn provides crucial details that allow bad actors to:

Impersonate you
Launch phishing attacks
Target you with scam job offers
Harvest your contacts’ information
Build detailed digital profiles without your consent

In Part I of this series, Why LinkedIn Having Your Address Book is Dangerous, I shared how reactivating my LinkedIn account triggered a wave of sketchy job offers, creepy ads, and a sophisticated phishing attempt that almost fooled me.

That got my attention, but I still need to use LinkedIn for my business.

Here’s the thing: You don’t have to delete LinkedIn to protect your data. You do, however, need to lock it down and treat it like the high risk environment it is.

1-Delete the LinkedIn app from your phone

Need convincing? Here’s why the LinkedIn App is risker than the website.

2-Make your LinkedIn Profile Private (to Strangers and Crawlers)

LinkedIn profiles are indexed by search engines and easily viewable by anyone unless you change your settings. Depending on our jobs, we’ll all make different decisions here. Double check that your privacy dial is set where you want it.

Here’s how to adjust your visibility for maximum protection of your data on LinkedIn:

Go to Settings & Privacy
Select Visibility
Update these settings accordingly:

Profile viewing options: Set to Private Mode
Edit your public profile: turn Off your profile’s public visibility (or, go through the long list of options for what people can or cannot see)
Who can see or download your email address: Only me
Who can see your connections: Only you
Representing your organizations and interests: Off
Page owners exporting your data: Off
Profile discovery and visibility off of LinkedIn (formerly known as "sharing data with third parties”): Off
Profile discovery using email address: 1st degree connections (not Anyone!)
Profile discovery using phone number: Nobody (not Everyone!)

3. Protect Your Data Privacy

Fueled by your personal data, LinkedIn makes money by selling ads, premium subscriptions, and powerful recruiter tools. Unless you adjust your privacy settings, LinkedIn tracks what you click, who you know, and even what you do off the platform to profit from your behavior.

Here's how to protect yourself from being monetized without your consent:

Go to Settings & Privacy
Select Data Privacy
Update these settings accordingly:

How LinkedIn uses your data

Personal demographic information: Remove
Social, economic, and workplace research: Off
Data for Generative AI improvement: Off

Who can reach you

Messages > Job invitation messages from recruiters: Off (unless you are looking for a job)
Research invites: Off
LinkedIn promotions and LinkedIn promotional emails: both Off

Messaging Experience

Messaging suggestions: Off

Job seeking preferences (Unless you are looking for a job, lock this down. It’s invasive)

Job application settings:
Save resumes and application data: Off
Share resume data with hirers: Off
Save self-ID information: Off
Show your profile when you click Apply for a job: Off
Signal your interest to recruiters at companies you’ve created job alerts for: Off
Stored job applicant accounts: remove accounts if you have any.

Other applications

Permitted services: If any are listed, disable
Microsoft Word: Off

4. Turn Off LinkedIn Ad Tracking and Behavioral Profiling

LinkedIn tracks your searches, clicks, and profile views to build a behavioral profile in order to deliver highly targeted ads (or sketch job postings alongside real ones).

To reduce surveillance and highly targeted ads:

Go to Settings & Privacy
Select Advertising Data
Update these settings accordingly:

Profile data

Turn Off the following: Connections, Companies you follow, Groups, Education and skills, Job information, Employer, Customized display format, Profile location

Activity and inferred data

Turn Off the following: Inferred city location, Interest and traits, Age range, Gender

Third-party data

Turn Off the following: Ads beyond LinkedIn, Interactions with businesses, Ad-related actions

5. Scrub Sensitive Info from Your LinkedIn Profile

Scammers scrape LinkedIn to build fake identities and gather clues for phishing attacks.

To keep personal data safe on LinkedIn, avoid posting:

Personal email or phone number
Exact home city (especially if you work remotely)
Nonprofit or board affiliations that might link to donation activity (a phishing goldmine)
Resume-style detail that includes dates and travel history

Keep it professional, not personal. Scammers piece together a puzzle. The less you give them, the harder it is to finish.

Delete Synced Contacts and Calendar Access From LinkedIn

Technically, you already did this thanks to Part 1. If you haven’t, definitely do so now.

Be Wary of Fake Recruiters and Job Scams on LinkedIn

LinkedIn has become a major channel for phishing scams disguised as job offers.

Some signs something’s off:

Messages from generic “recruiters” using Gmail or Outlook
Job offers that skip interviews but ask for personal info, especially ones that come out of the blue and require you to click links or submit information via Google Forms
Requests for verification payments or gift cards
Urgent messaging (“Apply now or lose the role!”)

Always verify the recruiter’s identity. Go to the actual company website and contact them through official channels before engaging.

You Don’t Have to Quit — But You Do Need to Be Savvy

LinkedIn isn’t inherently evil — but it is part of the surveillance economy and data hungry. if you’re not careful, it can expose you and your contacts to real harm.

The good news? If you’ve followed the steps above, you’ve locked ‘er down.

Next Up: Part III: How to Delete Your LinkedIn Account and Wipe Your Data Trail

If you’ve read this and thought, “Nope. I’m out,” you’re not alone. Next week, we’ll walk you through how to completely remove your LinkedIn account, delete your data, and take your information back for good.

This post reflects my personal experience and understanding of LinkedIn’s practices as of July 2025. For the latest information, consult LinkedIn’s official privacy policy.

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Disclaimer: The above is solely intended for informational purposes and in no way constitutes legal advice or specific recommendations.

Part II: How to Stay Safe on LinkedIn - 5 Critical Privacy Settings You Need Now