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A detailed look at how LinkedIn (Microsoft) collects, stores, and uses your personal data.
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Poor
LinkedIn (Microsoft)'s privacy score of 25/100 reflects their data collection practices, transparency, incident history, and user control options. This score indicates significant privacy concerns that users should be aware of.
In 2021, data of 700 million LinkedIn users (92% of the user base) was scraped and sold on dark web forums, including full names, email addresses, phone numbers, and geolocation records.
A 2012 data breach exposed 6.5 million hashed passwords, but in 2016 it was revealed that the actual breach affected 117 million accounts, with credentials sold on the dark web for years.
In 2015, LinkedIn settled a $13 million class-action lawsuit over its 'Add Connections' feature that repeatedly spammed users' email contacts with LinkedIn invitations without clear consent.
LinkedIn was fined 310 million euros by the Irish DPC in 2024 for GDPR violations related to how it obtained consent for behavioral advertising and processed member data for ad targeting.
In 2020, LinkedIn was caught using 18 million email addresses of non-members to buy targeted Facebook ads, obtained through users who uploaded their contact lists.
Minimizing LinkedIn's data collection requires careful navigation of its extensive settings. Go to Settings & Privacy > Account Preferences > Site Preferences and review visibility options. Under 'Visibility,' change 'Profile viewing options' to 'Private mode' if you do not want your browsing to be tracked. Restrict who can see your connections, last name, and profile information. Under 'Data Privacy,' go to 'How LinkedIn uses your data.' Disable 'Manage your data and activity' options for salary data, job seeking preferences, and other sensitive categories. Turn off 'Get more relevant ads' and 'Share data across LinkedIn's family of companies.' Under 'Advertising Data,' disable all categories including profile data for ad personalization, interest categories, audience insights, and third-party data. Go to 'Third parties' and disable data sharing with research partners. Under 'Social, Economic, and Workplace Research,' opt out of having your data used for research purposes. Disable 'Connections sync' to prevent LinkedIn from continuously uploading your phone contacts. Review 'Permitted Services' and remove apps you no longer use. Under 'Communications,' turn off most notification types to reduce engagement tracking. Stop importing contacts and remove previously imported ones. Avoid using LinkedIn's mobile app when possible, as it collects more device data than the website. Use the web version with a privacy-focused browser and tracker-blocking extensions. Do not use LinkedIn's salary or job search tools, as this data is monetized. Be aware that even private-mode browsing generates metadata that LinkedIn uses. Consider building a personal website or portfolio as your professional presence instead, giving you full control over your data.
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