[legion]

Here's what I do:

1) I use separate services for e-mail, social networking, web searches (about the only thing I use Google for), and mapping.

2) I put everything on the most restrictive privacy settings, and only loosen them if there is something I really want to do.

3) I use FireFox as my web browser. I have AdBlock and Flashblock installed, and I have it delete browsing history and cookies upon exit, and I don't leave it open.

4) I run security software on my computer. I like the Norton stuff. Yeah, it consumes a lot of resources compared to others, but it is also the best (IMO) at blocking malicious websites, removing tracking cookies, and stopping malicious scripts. (It consumes a lot of resources because it watches everything.)

5) I use different passwords for different things. I'm not kidding when I say I run 8 different passwords simultaneously. They are randomly generated and I have a scheme for remembering them, which I won't share. Using whole english words in or as passwords are the worst passwords. Using 0 intead of O or 3 instead of E in a word is just as guessable. (I literally open up a copy of Notepad, bang away at the keyboard for 30 seconds or so without looking at the screen, making sure to use letters, numbers, caps, and special characters, then randomly select a string of the proper length from somewhere in the middle of the mess.)