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From the desk of Jason Balderama, CISO, County of Marin
Everyone, including children, should be taught how to be safe online. There are bullies, predators, hackers, and scammers that may pose a threat to children. These factors can make it challenging for parents to guide their children today on interacting with others through technology.
Online safety and privacy begin with talking about it and encouraging safe and smart decisions about online activity. Let’s explore some concepts and tips that apply to keeping everyone safe online.
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Cyberbullying is bullying that happens online. It can happen in an email, a text message, an app, an online game, or on a social media site.
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Deepfakes are artificial images or videos generated by a special kind of machine learning called "deep learning." With recent advancements in generative artificial intelligence technology, it can be difficult to tell what is real and what has been created to spread false information.
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Phishing / Identity Theft is when a scam artist sends text, email, or pop-up messages in a browser to get people to share their personal information. They can then use that information to commit identity theft.
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Sexting is the sending or forwarding of sexually explicit photos, videos, or messages from a cell phone. In addition to risking their reputations, friendships, and safety, this could be illegal activity.
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Social Media can help kids connect with family and friends, but it can invite danger if not used appropriately. Sharing too much information, posting pictures, videos, or words can damage reputation, hurt someone else, or invite a predator to contact the user. Once something is online, it may not easily be removed. Oversharing may be leveraged by online criminals to facilitate identity theft.
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Start at an early age. As soon as children can use a computing device, it is time to talk to them about using it safely. Parents and family have the best opportunity to teach children.
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Know what your kids are doing. Consider having a common area in the house for the family to do online activity, where children can feel independent, but not alone.
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Keep an open and honest environment. Let your children know they can come to you with any concerns or questions about their online experience.
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Protect your children’s information. Don’t over-share information about your children and teach them this principle. Set social media accounts so only approved friends can see their content.
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Respond appropriately to cyberbullying. Tell children to ignore or block bullies unless it becomes threatening. Report abuse to the website where it is taking place, or if you fear for your child’s safety, report it to law enforcement.
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Configure the security and privacy features on devices. Change default settings on your devices and enable security features like strong passwords, multi-factor authentication, and automatic updates.
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Update your devices. Keep all your computers and mobile computing devices up to date with the latest security patches and antivirus software.
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Consider installing or enabling parental controls on devices. Parental controls may include content filtering, screen time, and tracking.
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Teach kids to be cautious of suspicious messages. Consider forwarding suspected phishing emails to the Anti-Phishing Workgroup (APWG) at reportphishing@apwg.org
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Copyright © 2024 County of Marin, All rights reserved. |
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Disclaimer
The information provided in Marin CyberSafe News is intended to increase people’s awareness of cybersecurity and to help them behave in a more secure manner. Links in this newsletter are provided because they have information that may be useful. The County of Marin does not warrant the accuracy of any information contained in the links and neither endorses nor intends to promote the advertising of the resources listed herein. The opinions and statements contained in such resources are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the opinions of County of Marin.
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