Why should you avoid logging in with social networks?

You’ve probably logged into various online services using your Facebook or Google account. However, after learning about the downsides of using social media logins, you’ll probably avoid them like the plague.

• Effective solutions to protect social network accounts

4. Using social media logins is like putting all your eggs in one basket.

While social logins are convenient, one of the biggest drawbacks is that they are like putting all your eggs in one basket. You are sure that you will always have access to your main social media account because it is the key to all your online services.

If anything happens to your social media account (like it gets hacked or even suspended), you could lose access to all of your linked accounts. That’s an extreme example, but even small issues like your social media login provider experiencing an outage could leave you unable to access any of your accounts.

By using email and password or passwordless authentication techniques, you reduce the risk of losing access to your account, if your primary account is compromised or becomes inaccessible.

3. They take away control of your account

Another reason you should avoid signing up with Google, Apple, Facebook, or other social login providers is because they essentially tie your accounts and digital identity to a third party. If your social media account is restricted in any way, you won’t be able to access all of your other accounts.

By using email-based logins with strong passwords, you retain full control of your account and reduce the risk of losing access due to decisions made by third-party platforms.

2. Lack of anonymity

When you use social login, forget about online anonymity because all your accounts are linked to one identity. First, the social login provider keeps track of all the apps and services that have access to your identity and can therefore build a detailed profile of your online activity. Second, all linked accounts have access to your details, including name, email, etc., which may not be ideal in all situations.

Worse still, social login providers can also enforce real-name policies. By avoiding social login, you can create anonymous accounts with disposable email addresses to browse the internet anonymously. This is also useful if your job often involves testing different apps and services, most of which you may never use again or don’t trust enough to provide your real details.

1. Switching suppliers is difficult

The final reason you should avoid social logins is that they make it difficult to switch providers. For example, if you use Apple to log in to a particular account, it’s not easy to switch to another provider like Google, and vice versa. Once you experience this inconvenience, you’ll never want to use social login again — unless it’s the only way to sign up for a service.

Using social login makes it easy to sign up and log in to different apps and websites. However, using email and password or passwordless login is better because it gives you more freedom.