Etienne A. Gibbs, Internet Safety Advocate and Educator  

5 Tips for Keeping Your Kids Safe Online as seen on
ABC News' Good Morning America (July 16, 2008)

For the majority of teens and tweens, networking online isn't just a game, it's a necessity. But parents worry their children don't fully grasp the ramifications of posting personal information online.

There are ways to protect your child. Cybersecurity expert Parry Aftab, who is also the executive director of wiredsafety.org, tells you the five things your child needs to know to keep safe on sites like MySpace and Facebook.

The first thing parents should do is find their child's profile, according to Aftab. Many kids have more than one online profile, so you have to find out how many your child has and where they are. You are entitled to know and the best way to find out is by asking your kids, she said.

You don't want a confrontation. You just want to make sure your kids are safe. Giving them a day to clean up their profile will allow them to cleanse it if they have information or pictures posted that tell too much about themselves, she said.

To see the video at ABC News, go to my website

www.SayNotoHackersandSpyware.com

Parry Aftab, an Internet privacy and security lawyer, is Executive Director of www.WiredSafety.org  — the world's largest Internet safety and help group.  

With an extensive bio, Ms Aftab's an extremely busy person. Here's a small port of her bio:

Parry Aftab is a security, privacy, and cyberspace lawyer, as well as an author and child advocate. Recently more than 90% of her time is donated to Internet issues involving children and adults, ranging from protecting children from sex crimes online to helping adults avoid identity theft and fraud online. Her main focus is teaching good cybercitizenship, especially to young people. This includes cyberbullying and responsible use of technology.

While in demand as a public speaker, consultant, and resource to the media worldwide, Parry also wears other hats. She's The Privacy Lawyer columnist for Information Week Magazine and runs a very popular blog at www.ThePrivacyLawyer.blogspot.com

www.WiredSafety.org provides help, information and education to Internet and mobile device users of all ages. They help victims of cyberabuse ranging from online fraud, cyberstalking and child safety, to hacking and malicious code attacks. They also help parents with issues, such as MySpace and cyberbullying, and lots more.

www.Teenangels.org is a group of 13-18 year-old volunteers that have been specially trained by the local law enforcement, and many other leading safety experts in all aspects of online safety, privacy, and security.  After completion of the required training, the Teenangels run unique programs in schools to spread the word about responsible and safe surfing to other teens and younger kids, parents, and teachers.

At the urging of their Teenangels volunteers, a special group of volunteers will be able to continue as Teenangels after they become 18 years old, and a new group of Tweenangels has been formed for youth between 9 and 12 years of age.

Today's Tactics,Techniques, and Tips !

Are you telling or showing cybercriminals where you live?

Is your college student child exposing their identity?

In its annual report earlier this year, the Federal Trade Commission announced that the most vulnerable targets of identity theft are 18-29 year olds.

Likewise, the 2007 Identity Fraud Survey Report,released by Javelin Strategy & Research, uncovers similar findings. Their report states:

" Adult victims between the ages of 18 and 24 are least likely to take easy, but important, safeguards such as shredding documents and using antivirus software and firewalls, resulting in more than 5 percent of those surveyed falling victim. "

And Stephen Knighten, a research associate for Javelin Strategy & Research, adds that residence hall life may increase a student's risk for identity theft:

" Oftentimes,you're in a situation where you probably have a roommate and people coming in and out of your apartment … physical documents tend to sort of sit around, and there are more avenues of access with your roommates' friends and your friends. "

And what are some of the other careless acts of college students that leave them vulnerable to identity theft?

Here are a few of those ways they might be inviting predators, hackers, and other cybercriminals:

• 
  They setup and use an unsecured wireless network. Hackers love this because it makes their drive-by hacking that much easier. And not only is the student' information stolen, but the hacker may add software to turn the student's computer into a "zombie" computer thereby taking remote control of it.

Hint: It only takes a few more moments to create a userid and password for an extra level of protection. Just do it!

• They use guests' computers in the business centers of hotels to enter their personal and/or financial information. The newest trend for hackers is to hack into these computers so that can secretly record every keystroke and commit other crimes using the student's information.

Hint: If you use courtesy computers at a hotel or library, make absolutely sure that you are on a safe and secured line. And,taking it a step further, do not enter any personal and financial information unless it is absolutely necessary and this is your only option.

See a related story from ABC News' Good Morning America in a video entitled, "Online Hazards in Hotels". It is located at the ABC News site. To view it, just click on the link below:

http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=2965688

• 
  They inhabit social networking sites and let their younger siblings share the site with them. While social networking sites, like MySpace, Facebook, Black Planet, Tagged, Yuwie, to name a few, are extremely popular communities where young people innocently engage in countless hours of chatting and picture-exchanging.
  
• 
  
• (Side note: Once you put a picture online, you're actually giving that picture to everyone online to make a personal copy for their own use.) Unfortunately, these social networking sites have also become the hangouts for child molesters and other cybercriminals.

Hint: Putting filtering and monitoring software on kids' computers provides some protection.Parents, use legitimate software to block Web sites and create a log of visited sites. As parents and guardians, you can monitor a child's activity from other computers and be notified of violations via email or cell phone.

• They quickly and without verifying identities add new "friends" to their instant messenger buddy lists. While it is rewarding to see your circle of friends grow with new friends from around the world, be sure that you absolutely know that the new friend is actually who he says he or she is. Many times predators and cybercriminals (male and female) will hide behind pictures of extremely attractive ladies in sexy poses.

Hint: Before adding any new friends to your circle of friends, take time to read their profile (which may or may not be completed fully), or do further investigation by visiting their website. An incomplete profile should serve as a red flag and raise your level of suspicion.

That's your Tactics,Techniques, and Tips segment for today!