Here are some of the precautions you should take before you upload those drunken party photos online:

1. Use a secure password

'password' and 'happy123' are some of the most commonly hacked passwords, for the simple reason that they are so easy to guess. Try using a password that is at least 8 characters long, with a mix of numbers and letters.

2. Don't forget to sign out

Deselect the "keep me logged in" checkbox when you sing in to your photo sharing account on a public computer. Only request the site to remember your username and password if you are the only person using the computer. Always remember to sign out of your account before logging off a shared computer.

3. Use secure sharing functions

Many photo sharing web sites such as Photobucket and Flickr feature a number of ways to keep your photos secure and ways to share photos among only a select group of people.

Familiarise yourself with these security functions and make sure that the settings are in place. In the event that you need to set a password lock, follow the password guidelines above.

4. Keep private photos on your computer

Should you not want to share a certain set of photos with anyone, don't upload them onto photo sharing web sites.