- According to the Shred Station (www.shredstation.net), 5% of identity theft victims are under the age of 18. That means it is your job as a parent to keep your children as safe online as you can. To protect them, it is important to make sure you educate them, such as telling them to keep their passwords private and not sharing their address or social security information. Be sure to monitor your child's online activity.
Here are some websites that will help keep you informed:
- Enough-is-Enough is a website that contains facts and up to date information on a variety of topics related to Internet safety. Whether your interest is cyberbullying or statistics on online predators, this website keeps you updated with current information.
- The FBI has a great website for keeping you up to date with various scams and spams.
http://www.fbi.gov/scams-safety/
http://cybersecuritygirlstrikesagain.blogspot.com/- This is a blog that the writer keeps up to date with current information.
Cyber Safety Tips:
The most important tip is to keep your personal information personal. Do not give out your name, address, or social security number to anyone online. It is also important to have a strong password that you keep private and do not share. For more safety tips, please visit
http://www.harcoboe.com/Parents/CyberSafety/SafetyTips.cfm
Ways to keep your equipment safe:
Make sure to have an antivirus program installed on your computer. Programs such as AVG Free software (http://www.avg.com/us-en/homepage) will protect your computer against virus and spyware. This software also offers firewall protection.
Reporting concerns:
The best place I found to report concerns is the FBI website at
http://www.ic3.gov/default.aspx
Make sure to do your job as a responsible adult and report a problem if you find one!
