New Facebook feature lets you hide all embarrassing old photos from friends

3 June 2020, 15:55

The new tool will streamline making old posts private. Picture: Getty

By Mared Parry

This'll be perfect for hiding all of those cringe selfies from years ago that you don't have the heart to delete.

Facebook has introduced a new privacy function that lets your hide certain posts you've made from years ago, instead of having to delete them.

We've all definitely posted some very embarrassing things when we were younger, and as much as it'd be nice to delete them all, sometimes you just don't want to lose the memory forever.

The social networking site has been around for a whopping 16 years now - plenty of time to rack up some embarrassing memories - so that's why this new function will work wonders.

Controlling your privacy settings has never been easier. Picture: PA

The new privacy tool has been unveiled which means it'll make it easier to hide the information you'd rather others didn't see.

Manage Activity allows Facebook users to archive posts they don't want friends to see any more, but that they still want to have access to.

The tool allows users to filter posts by person and date range.

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One example could be that photos from an old relationship you'd rather not have popping up all the time, or messy university pictures that you'd rather your colleagues not peer at, can be taken off your timeline.

Officials at Facebook say: "We believe people should have the ability to manage and control their data, and we will continue to develop new ways to honour people’s privacy by providing greater transparency and controls.”

Facebook officials have made a statement. Picture: PA

How to use the tool:

Make sure you've got the latest version of Facebook on your device (Updates are available in the App Store for Apple phones, or in the Google Play Store for other mobiles)

Head to the 'profile' section of the app and click on 'activity log' under the three dots next to the 'add story' function on your profile.

Then find 'manage activity'.

You'll be able to hide and remove posts as you chooseIt’s already possible to do this on Instagram.

The 'archive' feature in the app can be accessed via your profile.