Think back ten or twenty years. What were parent’s biggest fears for their kids? Growing up well over 20 years ago, I remember my mom was afraid of drugs. Maybe kidnapping or taking candy from strangers, but mostly my parents didn’t have to worry about all of the things—mostly technology related—that parents and families have to think about today.
While the internet is hard to imagine living without in 2019, it has the potential to be harmful if we’re not careful. Today, as summer starts to hit schools across the country, I want to walk through some tips to keep your kids safe online (while they have more time potentially on their phones and computers).
Tip 1: Keep your kids in the loop
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned when working with users of all ages is that to really get people conscious and concerned about their security is to involve them in the conversation. I’ve found that telling stories and letting them experience fake phishing attacks goes a LONG way in making sure they don’t fall for cybersecurity gotchas that might later end up shutting down your network.
Similarly, make sure your kids understand security, too. Teach your kids about suspicious activity online—and give them examples of warning signs for types of suspicious things. Instead of simply telling them what not to do, have conversations with them to make them aware WHY they should be serious and concerned about their safety online.
Tip 2: Understand why their identities are important
It’s really easy to expose yourself to identity theft and don’t for a second should you think that kids are immune from this. By disclosing personal data online, you and your family may open doors to scams. Scammers have found kids as easy open books when it comes to disclosing sensitive information—including social security numbers and other details useful in identity theft.
Remind your kids what is okay and what shouldn’t be revealed to strangers. Think about whether they should give out their date of birth, address, SSN or other personal information. Err on caution, and remember to frame things in stories (refer to Tip 1 here).
Tip 3: Know that private is not always private
More and more, websites and applications are collecting user information and using it for advertising and marketing. Make sure your family knows the value of online privacy. Kids (along with adults) often gloss over privacy policy statements without reading them—more focused on using an app opposed to knowing what data they are handing over when agreeing to the policy statement.
When your kids are online or using phone apps, remember that the data they are generating is not really that private. Take that perspective when evaluating how your kids are using the internet.
Tip 4: Watch out for phishing scams
I know we all go through phishing training (in fact we just went over phishing last week). The problem is that phishing isn’t just a work problem. While you might be trained to know not to click on a suspicious URL or attachment, your kids might not have any experience with this.
Why should they be suspicious when someone asks them to do something when it appears that an email is coming from a bank, Facebook, or a relative? Before letting your kids communicate online, make sure they have basic understanding of what is happening with latest scams and steps they can take to stay secure while communicating online.
Tip 5: Use a password management system
Are you still keeping your personal bank account logins in a notebook or on notepad on your desktop? Hackers can easily find information like this and your accounts—maybe with your entire savings—could be in jeopardy.
I recommend you keep a password management tool to lock up and protect all of your passwords. We recommend KeePass. For some more information on managing and creating passwords see a recent discussion on password management.
Tip 6: Keep your social networks clean and secure
There’s a good change that someone in your household (or everyone) is on some social network—Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, etc. Keep a close eye on those accounts. If someone messages you who hasn’t done so in a while or if someone friends you that you have no idea who they are, be suspicious. Also, try to err on not sharing your entire identity online.
For instance, don’t provide answers to your security questions to your bank account login wide open for the world to view on your Facebook account (that your favorite color is aqua, your mother’s maiden name is Smith, your pet’s name is Gerardo, or any other commonly asked security questions).
Bottom line: we want to make sure your families are safe online. Keeping everyone on the same page, with a singular mission of keeping safe online will go a long way in ensuring that your household or family is protected online.
