How to protect your privacy while gaming and streaming

Easy tips for protecting your privacy on Steam, PSN, Xbox Live, Nintendo Network, Amazon, and Netflix.

If you’re an avid gamer of a certain age, you probably remember the Playstation Network Outage of 2011. It lasted 23 days and approximately 77 million user accounts were compromised. It certainly is no fun when your favorite gaming service goes down, but also having your personal data leaked. Eek! So, we thought we’d share some tips on how to protect your privacy!

Last week, we interviewed avid gamer and online safety educator Fareedah Shaheed. We asked her: What are your favorite consoles and how do you protect your privacy/security on them?

Personally, I’m a fan of PC gaming, and I follow the foundational guidelines on keeping safe. This means I don’t use my real name and instead have come up with a nickname that I go by. I’m careful with what gaming applications I download, I don’t share my login details with other gamers, I use unique and strong passwords and enable two-factor authentication whenever available. Another way I stay safe is by always having an easy to mute button when in voice chat, it’s something that’s often overlooked however there have been so many occasions where people have leaked really sensitive information because they didn’t have a mute button or didn’t mute themselves.

Here are some additional tips to help you protect your privacy on gaming and entertainment services.

Steam

Steam is the most popular PC gaming platform. It’s important to check your privacy settings there as well. Log into your Steam account through your Steam client. Then go to View My Profile > Edit Profile > My Privacy Settings. From there you can change the visibility of your profile, game details, friends list, and your inventory. You can also decide who can post comments on your profile.

PlayStation Network

There are a few things you can do to lock down your privacy in the PlayStation Network from your PS4 or PS5. Go to Settings > Account Management > Privacy Settings. Then you can choose to hide your online status, activities, and gaming history. You can also choose who has access to your real name, how friends can follow you, and how to accept team invitations.

Xbox Network (Xbox Live)

Microsoft recently renamed Xbox Live to Xbox Network, to avoid confusion with their Xbox Live Gold subscription service. Whether you use a Xbox One or Xbox Series X/S, this should work to protect your privacy with your Xbox Network account.

Press the Xbox button on your controller. Then select Profile & system > Settings > Account > Privacy & online safety > App privacy. Or Profile & System > Settings > Account > Xbox Live Privacy > Privacy & Online Safety on Xbox Series X/S. You will see a list of privacy settings. Choose Child, Teen, or Adult privacy profiles. If only adults use your console and you buy games digitally, stick to the Adult profile. Then, go to View details & customize. From there, you can limit sharing your Xbox Network activity to your friends, or restrict other players from sharing your content.

Nintendo Network

If you use Nintendo Switch, Nintendo’s website has a privacy policy page you should read to understand how Nintendo uses your data. And from your Switch, there are a couple of things you can do. Click on your profile icon in the upper left corner. Go to User Settings and tweak your Friend Settings and your social media posting settings.

Amazon

If you use Amazon, whether or not you have an Amazon Prime subscription, the privacy settings are the same.

1. First, you should check how your Amazon profile looks like to other people. In Amazon from your web browser, go to Accounts and Lists > Ordering and shopping preferences > Your Amazon profile. Then you should tweak the information in your profile accordingly.
2. Next, you should stop Amazon from tracking your browsing! In Amazon’s website from your web browser, go to Browsing History in your Amazon search bar. Then go to Manage history and click on Remove all items from view. Then go to Turn Browsing History on/off and switch it off!
3. Finally, you’ll want to stop targeted advertising through Amazon. Go to Accounts and Lists > Communication and content > Advertising preferences. Then select “Do not show me interest-based ads provided by Amazon.”

Netflix

Netflix gathers data on which shows you watch, when, and where. They use that information to tweak their content over time. There’s no way to opt out of that if you’re a Netflix user. And Netflix really doesn’t like VPNs because they want you to only access content for your region. If you use a VPN service with Netflix, you may be blocked. They are also now starting to crack down on people making profiles for people who don’t live with them.

But what you can do is put a PIN number on your Netflix profile so people you don’t know can’t use it. 

In order to do this, you will need to log into Netflix from your web browser on your PC or Macbook. Click on your profile photo and choose “Account.” Then find the Profile & Parental Controls section. From there, go to Profile Lock and click on Change.

We hope we were able to help you protect your privacy on your online services! Remember to keep searching with Startpage, and you’ll be springing into action for privacy!