LinkedIn Basics
Yasmina Akni Ebourki
Last updated: Jan 28, 2026
Let’s be honest: LinkedIn is the world’s biggest professional shop window.
Recruiters, colleagues, competitors, and also strangers can peek inside to see your career journey.
That’s great when you want to be seen… but what about when you don’t?
Maybe you’re job-hunting quietly. Maybe you’re tired of spam messages. Or maybe you simply value your online privacy.
Let’s dive into the different ways to make your LinkedIn account private.
Why You Might Want to Make Your LinkedIn Profile Private
Before we dive into the “how to make your LinkedIn profile private,” let’s talk about the “why.”
Making your LinkedIn profile private can help you:
Avoid constant recruiter DMs that clutter your inbox.
Stop competitors from quietly tracking your every career move.
Keep your data out of the hands of strangers (or worse, scammers).
Control your professional narrative, because you should decide what the LinkedIn account knows about you.
Step-by-Step Guide: How to Make LinkedIn Private
Alright, let’s dive into the practical part:
Whether you want to browse profiles discreetly, control what others see, or keep a lower profile online, these steps will walk you through everything.
1. Accessing Your LinkedIn Privacy Settings
To start adjusting your privacy, you’ll need to access the right settings panel:
Click on your profile picture located in the top-right corner of the LinkedIn homepage.
From the drop-down menu, select Settings & Privacy.
Once inside, navigate to the Visibility tab. This is your control center for deciding who can see your activity, profile information, and connections.
2. Changing Profile Visibility to “Private Mode”
Sometimes you want to check out other profiles without leaving a digital footprint. That’s where Private Mode comes in:
Inside the Visibility tab, look for Profile Viewing Options.
Select Private Mode.
From now on, when you view someone’s profile, your name and headline won’t be visible to them; they’ll only see that an anonymous LinkedIn user visited.
3. Controlling What the Public Sees
If you want to go even further in customizing your visibility:
On the right side of your profile page, click Edit Public Profile & URL.
In the Edit Visibility section, you can toggle off specific areas such as your work history, education, skills, or profile photo.
This lets you keep the essentials public while hiding anything you prefer to share only with connections.
Privacy vs. Networking: What is The Difference?
On LinkedIn, your visibility isn’t just a checkbox in settings; it’s a lever you can pull to shape the opportunities that come your way.
The more discoverable you are, the easier it is for recruiters, potential clients, and industry peers to find and connect with you.
This kind of visibility fuels networking, builds credibility, and can open doors you didn’t even know were there.
But there’s a flip side. Being too visible can attract spam, irrelevant messages, and even competitors quietly monitoring your activity.
The secret isn’t disappearing — it’s being selectively visible. Keep your headline, key skills, and summary public and optimized so the right people can see your strengths. At the same time, limit access to more sensitive details like your full work history, personal contact information, or activity feed.
This balance allows you to expand your reach, attract relevant opportunities, and establish strong professional relationships, while maintaining control over who can view the rest of your profile.
In short: you’re open for business, but only to the customers you want.
4 Advanced LinkedIn Privacy Tips for 2026
Once you’ve locked down your profile basics, it’s time to go deeper.
LinkedIn’s privacy isn’t just about hiding your work history, it’s also about managing what people can see about your network, your activity, and even how LinkedIn uses your data.
1. Limit Who Can See Your Connections
If you don’t want competitors, recruiters, or strangers snooping through your network, head to Settings & Privacy → Visibility → Connections and set it to Only You.
This way, nobody else can see who you’re connected with, keeping your business relationships private.
That way you can still keep certain connections visible to shared contacts, but for maximum privacy, keep them hidden.
2. Hide Your Contact Information
Your phone number and email should never be an open invitation to spam or cold pitches.
Under Visibility → Contact Info, set them to Connections Only or Nobody.
Extra step: If you’re actively job hunting, set up a separate email address just for LinkedIn so recruiters can contact you without cluttering or compromising your main inbox.
3. Control What Others See About Your Activity
Your profile might be locked down, but your likes, comments, and posts can still reveal more than you’d like. To keep a low profile:
Go to Settings & Privacy → Visibility → Visibility of your LinkedIn activity.
Change “Who can see your activity feed” to Only You if you want to explore and interact without leaving a public trail.
4. Adjust Post Visibility and Tagging
Every post, comment, or tag is another way your activity can be seen by people you may not want in your audience.
When you create a post, take a moment to click the audience selector and choose Connections Only or Group Members instead of broadcasting it to “Anyone.”
This small habit ensures your content reaches the right people without spilling into the public feed.
Also, visit Settings & Privacy → Visibility → Mentions or Tags and activate the option to review any tag requests before they appear. That way, you have full control over when and where your name is linked to someone else’s content.
LinkedIn doesn’t have to be an open book. By following these privacy tips, you can take full control over who sees your profile, what details they can view, and how much information you share.
FAQ
Can I make my LinkedIn completely invisible?
Not entirely. You can hide almost every section of your profile, but LinkedIn will still display your name and headline to certain users, especially if you share mutual connections or appear in searches.
Does LinkedIn notify someone if I block them?
No. Blocking is discreet; they won’t get any alert or message about it, and your profile will disappear from their view.
Can I hide my profile from search engines?
Yes. In your privacy settings, disable Public Profile Visibility to remove your LinkedIn profile from Google, Bing, and other search results.
Can I hide my current job from my profile?
Yes. Edit the experience entry and set its visibility to Connections Only or remove it entirely from your public profile.
Can I temporarily deactivate LinkedIn?
Yes. LinkedIn offers an account hibernation feature, which hides your profile and activity without permanently deleting your account.
How can I hide my LinkedIn profile from someone?
Go to the person’s profile, click More → Report/Block, and follow the prompts. Once blocked, they won’t be able to see your profile, contact you, or interact with your content.