Facebook Etiquette: I Don't Remember this Person - What do I do?

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

Okay, so I signed up for Facebook simply to be part of an old employer’s alumni network. I have yet to actually visit my page; I just get alumni updates sent to my email address. Fine by me.

In the past couple of weeks I have gotten a handful of folks who have found me on Facebook and want to connect. So far, so good. But I just got one from, well, call, her Betty. I kinda know I should remember her from 25 years ago in high school, but I have the smallest flicker of recognition. Either way, I don’t have much interest in trying to reconnect. I barely remember her in only a kinda-sorta sort of way…

What is done in this situation?

  • ignore the email asking me to connect?
  • connect, but offer no further communication?
  • connect and make meaningless small talk if she actually tries to communicate with me? (this one isn’t gonna happen)
  • some other option I haven’t thought of?

Help me, oh Dopers who hang out at social networking sites…

2

I am Facebook friends with a few people I only know in a very vague way. Usually I just accept their invite and forget about them. Not a big deal, unless you have sensitive information up on your profile. If they turn out to be annoying (like they send out a lot of meaningless mass messages or keep inviting me to install applications) I just delete them later on.

Or you could just ignore the invite. Some people just like inviting everyone and their neighbor’s cousin’s ex’s co-worker’s dog to be Facebook friends. They probably won’t even remember friending you in the first place.

3

I signed up for Facebook to make connections with my classmates now that I am in college again. However, some of my online friends found me and added me as a friend, and so I had to delete my account. I just don’t want my online life overlapping with my real life that closely–for example I don’t want anyone browsing someone’s list of friends to recognize my photo and suddenly know my full legal name. :X

Oh well, no Facebook for me.

For your situation I’d say just ignore it.

4

I have the same problem. Not so much that I don’t remember them, but just that I never really had a good enough relationship in the first place to want to get back in contact with them. I kind of assumed it was the same for them, but evidently not.

I usually deny them at first, but if they keep harassing me I’ll just add them then ignore them.