How to Protect and Restore Your Online Reputation

Sometimes all one has is a reputation, and keeping that reputation in good standing is vital to any job seeker. What the potential employer finds on the internet about a prospective employee could mean the difference between not just a job interview, but actually landing that job. So it is important to know how one's reputation actually looks online, let alone how to repair any damage.


How to Protect and Restore Your Online Reputation

Learn how to protect one's online reputation and identity. At least, that's the promo for the book Wild West 2.0: How to Protect and Restore Your Online Reputation on the Untamed Social Frontier, by Michael Fertik and David Thompson. The book is comprised of 14 chapters, but really there are only a few chapters that deal with the repair or protection of that online reputation. Likening the internet to the untamed and largely unpoliced Wild West, these authors delve into the background as well as the how of internet attacks on reputation.




The chapter titles are listed here to give the reader a better feeling for how the authors see the themes for this book:

-Welcome to the New Digital Frontier
-Your Online Reputation is Your Reputation
-The Internet is the New Wild West
-The Forces Driving Online Reputation
-Anonymous Cowards
-Google Gone Wild:The Digital Threat to Reputation
-Why People Attack Each Other Online
-Types of Internet Attacks
-How to Measure Damage to Your Internet Reputation
-Your Reputation Road Map and Online Reputation Audit
-Getting Proactive: the Best Defense is a Good Offense
-Recovering From Online Smears: Restoring Your Reputation After the Damage has been Done
-Protect Your Small Business and Your Professional Reputation
-Conclusion: Embrace the Internet

Types of Digital Attacks Explained

Most of the early chapters really only discuss the reasoning behind the wild west theory and how the internet creates false impressions. Nothing really new here for most internet users, but a good dose of reality for some users in understanding google ranks. Chapter eight does a good job of explaining the types of attacks on a reputation, and actually specifies how googlestuffing can be used as a malicious tool.

Maldives Luxury Resorts Close To The Capital
Maldives (South Asia) - True Tropical Island Paradise

It's chapters 10,11, and 12 that really are the meat for this book. Please note – chapter nine "How to Measure Damage to Your Internet Reputation" really should come after chapter 12 – that's where it makes the most sense in terms of information as well. These chapters actually go into what many might consider a tough road – some may not understand the how of these chapters, and the authors do suggest finding professionals to help.

Reputation-Defender

Yes, the book could be considered a promotion for the authors' company Reputation-Defender, but they only mention their company once. While the book is too heavy by about five chapters, it is a much needed and necessary resource to combat the ever-increasing online damage to professional and personal reputations. For chapters 10-12 (and 9 following afterwards) it is definitely worth the time and effort to learn how to protect a job seeker's reputation.

Comments