Digital Footprints: The What and Why They Matter
GENERAL
7/30/20253 min read
The Digital Footprint. We surely have all heard this term at some point in our careers. But what is a digital footprint really? How much does one matter?
What Is a Digital Footprint?
A digital footprint is the record of your online activity. It includes:
Websites you visit
Social media posts, comments, likes, and shares
Emails you send
Apps you use
Purchases you make online
Even your location data, if you're using GPS-enabled devices
Your digital footprint is made up of two parts:
Active footprint: Information you deliberately share, like posting a photo on Instagram or filling out a form.
Passive footprint: Data collected about you behind the scenes—like websites tracking your behavior with cookies, or apps collecting metadata.
So why does it matter?
Your Reputation Is Online—Permanently
Whether you're applying for a job, a college, or even a loan, your digital presence is fair game. Recruiters and institutions increasingly run background checks online. An inappropriate comment from years ago or a questionable photo could come back to haunt you.
Your online activity paints a picture of who you are, and it's often the first impression others will have of you.
Your Data Is a Commodity
Your data is valuable—to advertisers, companies, even cybercriminals. Every action you take online helps build a profile about your habits, preferences, and behaviors. That’s how you end up with oddly specific ads following you across the web.
Understanding your digital footprint helps you take back control. You have more power than you think to manage what you share and who sees it.
Cybersecurity Risks Are Real
Hackers can piece together fragments of your digital footprint to answer security questions, guess passwords, or even impersonate you online. Oversharing on social media—like posting your pet’s name, birthday, or location—can give away more than you realize.
Being mindful of your digital footprint is a critical part of personal cybersecurity hygiene.
You Leave a Legacy Online
Have you ever thought about what your online presence will look like in 10, 20, or 50 years? From a digital legacy perspective, your footprint can influence how you're remembered—or misremembered.
Parents often create digital footprints for their children without realizing it. What’s posted today may still exist when those kids are adults.
Can I do anything about it?
Sort of. It's less about scrubbing all of our information from the Internet and more about limiting what information we give.
Double-check your privacy settings
Privacy settings on social media allow you to control who sees your posts. Review these settings and ensure they are set to a comfortable level. For example, Facebook will enable you to limit posts to friends and make customized lists of people who can see specific posts. However, remember that privacy settings only protect you on the relevant social media site.
Avoid unsafe websites
Make sure you’re working with a secure website – the URL should start with https:// rather than http:// - the “s” stands for “secure” and indicates that the site has a security certificate. This certificate encrypts the data in transit between your device and their server. There should also be a padlock icon to the left of the address bar. Never share any confidential information on unsecured sites, especially payment details.
Don’t log in with Facebook
Logging into websites and apps using Facebook is convenient. However, every time you sign into a third-party website using your Facebook credentials, you give that company permission to mine your Facebook user data – potentially placing your personal information at risk.
And most importantly:
Use search engines to check your digital footprint
Enter your name into search engines. Include your first and last name and any variations on spellings. If you have changed your name, search for both current and former names. Reviewing the search engine results will give you a sense of what information about you is publicly available. If any of the results show you in a negative light, you could contact the site administrator to see if they can remove it. Setting up Google Alerts is one way to keep an eye on your name automatically, ensuring that you know as soon as Google does whenever your name comes up.