How to delete 99.9%* of your online footprint

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Creatives from all walks of life have become increasingly reliant on the internet to get their work seen. You might share your designs to an audience of millions on social media (complete with your personalised Instagram font, of course), but you could also be leaving yourself vulnerable to hackers.

With cyber attacks on the rise, it's enough to make anyone paranoid. After all, your personal information or financial details could be floating around on the internet for hackers to steal. That's where ex-hacker and Twitter user @somenerdliam comes in with his thread "How to delete 99.9% of your digital footprint from the internet".

And it seems to be the advice that users have been waiting for. Despite having only been posted a couple of days ago, at the time of writing the thread currently boasts over 110,000 retweets and 439,000 likes. Perhaps he's on to something...

While his advice isn't going to help you disappear completely (the author admits his knowledge isn't completely up to date, and the "99.9" claim in his title isn't a practical claim), the tips in the thread are a good starting point when it comes to monitoring your digital hygiene. 

It makes for chilling reading. Not only does it ask you to trawl through a decade's worth of email addresses, it also acts as a wake up call to the amount of data people willingly share. Take a look at some of the stand-out points below.

To read the full thread, click here.

One point highlights the importance of using a VPN, which @somenerdliam admits is a personal preference. Find the right one for you with our guide to the best VPN services in 2019.

And as for @somenerdliam, he's not letting his new-found viral fame go to his head. Instead, he's been wondering why the thread struck a chord. His conclusion being that the tips were popular because they were accessible.

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