Did you know that LinkedIn sends emails to its users exposing anyone that has recently visited their profile? Thankfully, you have the option to hide your identity when browsing the app. Here’s how to do it.
While recruiters might want their name, title and workplace to appear in your search results, the majority of us don’t. Even just checking what your friends are up to these days can feel creepy knowing they’ll be notified that you took a peek.
What you might not know is that there are actually three visibility settings you can choose to browse in on LinkedIn.
The first (and default) option displays your name, headline, location and industry – so pretty much everything anyone could want to know. The second is semi-private, showing your job title, company, school and industry but not your name. The third option, meanwhile, is totally private. With this setting, the only thing other users will see when you visit their profile is that a “LinkedIn Member” was there.
Read on to learn how to hide your name, headline and workplace when visiting someone’s LinkedIn profile and browse anonymously.
What you’ll need:
- A LinkedIn account
The Short Version
- Open LinkedIn
- Go to your profile
- Tap Settings
- Tap Visibility
- Select Profile Viewing Options
- Choose Private Mode
How to hide yourself on LinkedIn
Step
1Open LinkedIn
This guide will include screenshots taken from the iOS app, but you can also follow these steps on the Android app or your PC.
Step
2Go to your profile
You can do this by tapping the icon in the top left corner with your profile picture.
Step
3Tap Settings
You can find this option in the bottom left corner.
Step
4Tap Visibility
This is the icon with the eye.
Step
5Select Profile Viewing Options
This should be the first option you see.
Step
6Choose Private Mode
It’s important to note that doing so will erase your own viewer history.
Troubleshooting
No, you’ll be anonymous regardless of the profile you visit. Not even Premium users can see who has visited their account if that person has their viewing visibility set to private.
No, if you have a Basic (free) account you need to show your name and headline to other users to see who has viewed your profile. Browsing privately will make everyone who visits your account anonymous for you as well.
If you want to see who is visiting your profile without going off private mode, you’ll need to upgrade to a Premium account. You still won’t see other private profiles, however.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
