LinkedIn can be used to search for job openings, find mentors and mentorships, join professional groups, and showcase professional accomplishments, qualifications, and experiences.
Networking on LinkedIn can also help individuals to build relationships, gain insight into their industry, and find career advice. Additionally, it can be used to stay informed on industry news, and even to build a personal brand.
FACTS
With over 600 million users and growing, LinkedIn is a valuable tool for many individuals in a wide range of professions.
Why Should I Make My LinkedIn Private or Hide LinkedIn Profile?
Making your LinkedIn private or hiding your account will give you more control over who can see your profile, allowing you to protect your personal information and maintain your privacy while reducing the visibility of your profile, making it harder for potential employers or recruiters to find you.
However, it may limit the amount of networking opportunities that you have access to and limit access to certain features such as groups, discussions and job postings. LinkedIn has two options if you want to make your LinkedIn profile private.
You can either choose to edit your visibility or hibernate your profile for a while. By hibernating your profile, you are temporarily deactivating your account; your profile will not be available to your connections and via the search results. Or if you do not want your LinkedIn profile, you permanently delete your LinkedIn account.
Pros Of Making My LinkedIn Account Private
Privacy
Making your LinkedIn account private or hiding your account will give you more control over who can see your profile, allowing you to protect your personal information and maintain your privacy.
Reputation
Hiding your LinkedIn account can help you protect your reputation, as it prevents people from seeing any posts or comments that could be seen as unprofessional or damaging to your reputation.
Security
It will protect you from potential cyber security threats, such as identity theft & data breaches.
Cons Of Making My LinkedIn Account Private
Networking
Hiding your LinkedIn account may limit the amount of networking opportunities that you have access to as people may not be able to find and contact you.
Visibility
Hiding your account can reduce the visibility of your profile, making it harder for potential employers or recruiters to find you.
Limited Access
Making your LinkedIn account private may also limit access to certain features such as groups, discussions and job postings
How to Make My LinkedIn Account Private?
Step 1: Log in to your LinkedIn Account
Step 2: Go to your profile by clicking the ‘Me’ option
Step 3: Click on Settings & Privacy
Step 4: Go to Visibilty section
Step 5: Select the Edit Your Public Profile option
Step 6: Turn off your visibility.
By turning off visibility on LinkedIn, your profile will no longer be visible to potential employers and recruiters. This means they won’t be able to see your skills and experience, which can be a serious setback if you’re looking for new opportunities.
Additionally, not being visible on LinkedIn means that you miss out on the benefits of networking with other professionals and staying up-to-date with industry news.
It’s important to remember that being invisible on LinkedIn doesn’t promote professional growth but limits the opportunities that can come from having an active presence in today’s competitive job market.
How to Hibernate Your LinkedIn Account?
Step 1: Log in to your LinkedIn Account
Step 2: Go to your profile by clicking the ‘Me’ option
Step 3: Click on Settings & Privacy
Step 4: Under the Account & Preferences setting, you will find the Hibernate Account.
Step 5: Once you click on the Hibernate account option, LinkedIn will ask you to choose the reason behind your account hibernation. Choose any option that you feel & click on next.
Step 6: Enter your password and click hibernate account
Once you click on hibernate account, you can temporarily disable your account. Your account will not be anybody on LinkedIn.
Conclusion
Editing your visibility, hibernating your LinkedIn account or deleting it entirely depends on each individual’s preference. Each of these options has its own pros and cons. We recommend that you analyse those before you take your call. Hope this blog guided you on how to make your LinkedIn private or hide your LinkedIn profile.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s)
1. Who can see public posts?
Anyone on LinkedIn can see your public post information: your name, profile picture, user, networks, etc.
2. What is the visibility of posts on LinkedIn?
Visibility of posts on LinkedIn basically means who can see/interact with your posts. You can edit your visibility settings as per your requirements.
3. Is there a ghost mode on LinkedIn?
No. Unlike many other social media platforms, LinkedIn does not have a ghost mode.
4. Can someone view your LinkedIn profile without you knowing?
Yes, anybody can view your LinkedIn profile without you knowing. But if you have access to LinkedIn Premium you can see who viewed your profile.
