Today is Little One’s first day back at school. For the past few weeks, we’ve been trying to get getting Little One back into back-to-school bedtime routine and preparing her for her school routine again. With all the prepping we’ve been doing for back-to-school, one important thing should not be overlooked — The know-how to ensure our children are safe online.
That’s right! With kids being on mobile devices much younger than we were (I was in my twenties when I got my first cell phone), the need to keep kids safe online is paramount.
My 5 year old uses her tablet and iPod minimally and under my supervision. This said, while I was cooking supper the other night, she was sending me screenshots of her cupcake creations from a cupcake maker app on her iPod! She then started sending recipes to my email! My initial reaction was, “Awwww! How cute! She’s a tech savvy, creative little foodie!”
My reaction quickly changed to “I need to change the settings on her device so I can make sure she doesn’t send anything to anyone and make sure she’s safe online!”
Survey Says…
According to Canadian not-for-profit organization and official TELUS WISE partner MediaSmarts, Cyberbullying is on the rise, with one in ten Canadian students experiencing it last year. Studies show that it can have traumatic effects on youth, with links to depression, yet kids underestimate how much it can impact them, shrugging it off as a normal part of their online interactions.
A TELUS survey reveals that 71 per cent of parents purchased their child’s first mobile device before the age of 14 and 5 per cent of parents bought their child a mobile device before the age of eight.
· Parents say they are buying these devices to protect their children offline. Nearly one-third (31 per cent) say they want to be able to contact their child, while 27 per cent want their child to have a mobile device in case of an emergency.
· At the same time, parents are worried about their child’s online safety: 64 per cent of parents are concerned about the visibility of personal information, 50 per cent are concerned about privacy and 42 per cent of all parents surveyed reported that cyberbullying is a top concern when it comes to their child’s safe use of mobile devices
TELUS WISE: Ten Tips for Back-To-School Online Safety
Online security is becoming increasingly important. From hackers and cyberbullies to predators and phishers, the online world can be a scary place if you’re not armed with the right information. As your kids head back to school, here are some tips from TELUS and TELUS WISE to keep in mind so you and your family can keep yourselves safer online:
1. Review the permissions before giving permission. Apps and social sites often ask for access to personal information that could put you at risk. Set rules around what info you and your kids will share and with whom.
2. Keep it private. It is vital to constantly check and adjust privacy settings within apps and social sites to keep up with ever-changing defaults. Looks for app settings that share information publicly and change it to close friends only.
3. Set-up a 24/7 watchdog for your name. Create a Google alert for yourself and each of your family members to track how your names are being used online and where you’re being mentioned. Find out more on our TELUS WISE site.
4. Less is more. Limit the amount of potentially sensitive information posted online to lower chances of theft or abuse – think twice before posting last names, age, school names, vacation location or other personal info.
5. Keep connections personal. A good rule of thumb is to only connect and share with people that you know in real life. “Friending” people online whom you’ve never met increases your risk of exploitation.
6. Think before you click. Always read the full path of the URL link you are about to click to make sure it’s going to take you where you want to go.
7. Don’t be found. Turn off geo-tagging on smartphones and tablets to keep from being tracked. When this feature is enabled, your exact location can be exposed even if you’re just posting a photo. Ensure that apps that rely on location (e.g. Google Maps) are the only ones that have location enabled.
8. Lock it down. Set passwords that are at least six characters long. Use at least one symbol, number and uppercase letter; for extra security use different passwords for each website or account you use.
9. Don’t log in and leave it. Always be sure to log out of social accounts and apps when you aren’t using them. Disable or deactivate accounts and apps you no longer use.
10. Keep your digital household clean. Set a recurring 3-month calendar appointment to check your online profiles, confirm privacy and permission settings on the social media sites you subscribe to and review any apps that you’ve downloaded.
For more tips to keep you and your family safe online, or to get set up with free online safety education, visit the TELUS.com/WISE or visit a local TELUS store.
Just an aside…
Did you know? Offline, TELUS knows that some families across Canada struggle with buying school supplies. TELUS retirees volunteer as TELUS Community Ambassadors across Canada and are fairy godmothers and godfathers in their local communities! They volunteer their time for a variety of causes, but their most impassioned cause is Kits for Kids. They spend the summer stuffing backpacks with supplies to donate to inner-city schools at the beginning of the school year to make sure that every kid starts with the tools they need to thrive. Since 2007, they’ve assembled more than 78,750 backpacks, and this year at handing out more than 1,500 kits across Ontario.
A Back-to-School GIVEAWAY!
TELUS keeps in mind the online safety of your family. What better way to celebrate back-to-school than with a new device for your teen or college student? Remember to share the helpful tips of TELUS WISE with your family and get set up with free online safety education!
The great people at TELUS are giving one lucky Life on Manitoulin reader a Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini!
- A compact screen that’s big on clarity
- The perfect size for on-the-go operation
- For a fast and smooth smartphone experience
- A big engine for a small phone
To enter:
Simply fill out the Rafflecopter form below. Open to residents of Canada only. Ends September 30, 2014.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Disclosure – This giveaway is sponsored by TELUS. As always, all thoughts and opinions expressed on this blog are honest and my own.
Change your passwords often!
Googlimg yourself is an eye opener! Most people dont realize what kind of electronic footprint they’re leaving behind & the information available to the public about you. Important to teach children about what they put out there.
“6. Think before you click. ” ESPECIALLY when it comes to e-mail. Or anything really. If you don’t know a person or if you didn’t enter that contest or if you don’t have this account, then it’s safe to say that a person who says you won a lottery or that you “need to change your password” for some unknown account isn’t to be trusted. Or if some seemingly famous person wants to be friends with you, out of the blue – same think. Think twice or thrice before you click.
And practice the conventional wisdom of “if it seem to be too good to be true, it probably is.”
keep an eye on your privacy on apps and keep it updated as they update
I think its important to change your password often!
Less is more. Limit the amount of potentially sensitive information posted online to lower chances of theft or abuse – think twice before posting last names, age, school names, vacation location or other personal info.
Change your passwords often!
I think the tip my kids need to learn is Keep it private. It is vital to constantly check and adjust privacy settings within apps and
social sites to keep up with ever-changing defaults. Looks for app settings that share
information publicly and change it to close friends only.
They are still young for any social media sites but in a few years they are going to want to be online with friends and all of these tips are great. I love Telus, great company.
definitely love the turning off geo-tagging tip , I have heard about this in the media ! its important !
check your online profiles every 3-months
I think it’s important for everyone to remember to have a strong password and to change it frequently
i like #3:
3. Set-up a 24/7 watchdog for your name. Create a Google alert for yourself and each of
your family members to track how your names are being used online and where you’re
being mentioned.
My favorite and essential tip from telus wise is
Keep it private. It is vital to constantly check and adjust privacy settings within apps and
social sites to keep up with ever-changing defaults. Looks for app settings that share
information publicly and change it to close friends only
Can’t remind my kids enough to always think before you click
To have a strong password and as much as it might be a nuisance, change it often.
Having a stong password and changing it frequently
Use a strong password.
Change passwords often (I am so guilty of not doing this!)
Shutting off geotagging is an excellent safety reminder.
check your online profiles every 3-months
Setting a strong password is very impt.
Turning off geotagging is an excellent tip to keep your family and belongings safe
Lock it down. Set passwords that are at least six characters long.
I think strong passwords are extremely important for everyone.
Use a strong password and change it often!
I think the Turn off most geo-tagging tip is most important. It;s terrifying to think that anyone anywhere will know exactly where your at when you share your photos.
Great Post! i really like the article on TELUS WISE footprint
A fun way for Canadian tweens and teens to explore how to keep their digital footprint clean.
having a tween just starting middle school I really want her to read and learn about it!
I think it’s important to ensure you have emergency contacts stored on your phone.
Turn off geo-tagging! I will be checking now !
Set-up a 24/7 watchdog for your name
Strong passwords, changed often.
Chose strong passwords and change them often. Great review. I am always changing apps settings. Be nice if they had a default setting.
I would change passwords more often. I set passwords on certain apps on my device so my kids don’t have access or tap it by accident.
change your password often
Use strong passwords, 1 number, symbol, and upper and lower case letters. Change it often
All great tips! Erase your personal information when you upgrade to a new smartphone is really important. We don’t always realize how much information we’re storing in these phones!
Keeping it private is likely the best solution. It impacts everything else you do!
strong passwords, changed often
One of the most important tip is probably to erase your history and private information.. Sometimes we carry a LOT of information on those devices! And hacking can happen fast
Turn off most geo-tagging! So Important.
Turn off most geo-tagging! Such a smart tip ! I will be checking now !
Keep it Private is a great tip. Always check the privacy settings.
my fav tip is change your password often!
My favourite tip is it to change passwords often! (:
My fav. tip is it to change passwords often. I def. need to do this 😛
Definitely to have strong secure passwords mixed with letters and numbers. There are way too many hackers out there!
I am an advocate for Cyberbullying and my tip would be for kids to NEVER open up someone else’s laptop or desktop or device in their home or wherever there is WiFi, as that person now has access to your personal information, including your password and user name. It happened to my daughter…Thanks for bringing awareness!! 🙂
Parents set bad example by staying glued to smartphones
Agreed. There is a time for being on one’s smartphone and a time for going “unplugged” and spending quality time with family 🙂
Changing passwords often and using stronger passwords (one symbol, number and uppercase letter)
I like the tip on TELUS WISE footprint
Have strong secure passwords mixed with letters and numbers!!
I like the tip of putying a Google Alert on your name so you can track what is being said about you online. Perfect for your pre teen and teen kids as well!
Have stronger passwords.
Something that I don’t do nearly enough.. change my password.
Thanks for hosting. Love Telus and all they do for their customers #actsofkindness
Besos, Sarah
Blogger at Journeys of The Zoo
Erase your personal information when you upgrade to a new smartphone
Sometimes the simplest sharing of information is overlooked – good tip on GPS applications
When you install them, many applications will ask you for permission to use your location. When in doubt, say no. Will be more diligent in the future….thanks
Eva Mitton-Urban
We are pretty strict with online privacy in our home but one thing that we do not do on the TELUS list is “keeping our digital household clean” by doing a privacy /account settings checkup every 3 month! This never occurred to me but I think it would be so helpful and beneficial to “tidy” our networks up from third-party apps or companies, etc. etc.
change passwords often!
Make passwords hard and change often
Choosing harder passwords, for sure – it’s just such a pain in the butt!
I used to get my social media accounts hacked into a few years ago but ever since I started using a different password for EVERY account I haven’t had a problem so that is Telus tip I highly recommend.
my kids are better than me with all devices.
Choosing difficult passwords. I should learn from that
Turn off geo-tagging on smartphones and tablets to keep from being tracked don’t store passwords!
I love this tip
Don’t be found. Turn off geo-tagging on smartphones and tablets to keep from being
tracked. When this feature is enabled, your exact location can be exposed even if you’re
just posting a photo. Ensure that apps that rely on location (e.g. Google Maps) are the
only ones that have location enabled.
Change passwords often.
Keep it private
I think this is so important
Strong passwords tip is the most important
I like the Changing passwords, really important for our safety!
to back up your information which i have not done great tip
Change your password often! Shocking what people will go thru to wreck havoc on us!
I defiantly think it’s important to talk about cyberbullying. It’s a very real issue that children have to deal with today. Very different from when we were children!
its important to change password often
Turn off geo-tagging on smartphones and tablets to keep from being tracked. I find that this acts as a beacon of your whereabouts. Turn it off!
Back up your information often.
The tip I like the best is the one to change passwords. I do not change my password enough.
This one is great -Don’t be found. Turn off geo-tagging on smartphones and tablets , I am always trying to tell my teenagers about this one , they always roll their eyes but they dont realise if someone is watching them they could track them . I didnt know about this one -Set-up a 24/7 watchdog for your name. I like that one I am going to do that
These tips are good. Actually one of them was about keeping th connections personal and we taught our daughter this lesson over the weekend when she jumped into a chat room and started talking to someone whom we didnt know. we were worried and asked her to read us what the other person was writing just to keep alert.
definitely having passwords that are more difficult
I like the Changing passwords, really important for our safety!
I like the changing passwords tip, i try to do it every 6 months or so
I like the changing passwords tip, i try to do it every 6 months or so
I like the tip “Think before you click. Always read the full path of the URL link you are about to click
to make sure it’s going to take you where you want to go. ”
All great tips,and great giveaway ,,: Would love to win this for myself actually,since I am the only family memebr that does not own a phone ..lol
Fantastic tips and blog. I have had my email hacked because the password was too easy! I have learned the hard way to make passwords more difficult. I like the tip to google your name the best!
Changing passwords is really important and making sure it’s a difficult one.
We think about parental controls on our desktops/laptops but not so much with tablets and smartphones and I have to say my tween girls are often using my (Telus) smartphone. I need to be more vigilant about reviewing where they have been clicking.
Think before you click! Great advice, because once you click, it’s out there forever!
Lock it down. Set passwords that are at least six characters long. Use at least one
symbol, number and uppercase letter; for extra security use different passwords for each
website or account you use.
Not sure if my comment posted?
Toothfairy gOOgles herself and thinks others should too!
The Toothfairy gOOgles herself and thinks others should too!
I definitely think change your passwords often and pick passwords that are a mix of both letters numbers and symbols.
I like the tip to use a different password for each website. It may be harder than having the same password but will be safer in the long run.
Digital house cleaning
We don’t do this enough here. I am in a habit of doing it for my own accounts but the whole family should be involved.
Choose Applications Carefully
My favourite tip is List your emergency contacts you never know when you need it
Dont log in and leave it. This is something my daughter does and I keep trying to remind her to log out.
i like the google alert
My favourite tip is List your emergency contacts – I have to admit I am guilty of not doing this with our phone but I am going to take time to do it tonight.
My favourite tip is the ‘List your emergency contacts’. We are planning on getting my son a phone for Christmas and this is good to know.
i like the tip – Put a Google Alert on your name so you can track what is being said about you online. Just go to google.com/alerts and type in your name in quotation marks. You will receive Google alerts via email when your name appears online. This is not a 100% guarantee but a great start to tracking your digital footprint.
Great way for me to track if anything is being said about the family
changing passwords more often
I like the Choose Applications Carefully tip. My teen son used to download so many random apps and didn’t realize how much information he was sharing with anyone who wanted to see it. Now he has to get permission before he downloads anything!
Great post! I think this tip is important:
Less is more. Limit the amount of potentially sensitive information posted online to lower chances of theft or abuse – think twice before posting last names, age, school names, vacation location or other personal info.
Agreed, Bons! 100%!!!
create difficult passwords and change them often!
I like the tip to Google yourself
Me too! Did you Google yourself? 😉 I did!
The tip that has me shocked right now is this one; Set-up a 24/7 watchdog for your name. Create a Google alert for yourself and each of your family members to track how your names are being used online and where you’re being mentioned.
Keep the family safe
Great idea!!!
My favourite tip is create difficult passwords and change them often! 🙂
Thanks for sharing these tips! I find the password one is one that I am currently working on!
All good ideas,keep up on your digtal housework,don’t allow your geo location and trust your gut!!If it seems too good to be true it is,don’t click!
So true! If it’s too good to be true, don’t click!
I think the best tip is about passwords, even though I don’t always follow it.
I think its important to create difficult passwords, and change them often. I know I am guilty of not changing them enough, but I do try to make mine strong that would be hard for anyone, including those close to me, to figure out.
Thank you for the amazing giveaway. I love Telus. We have EVERYTHING with Telus. Cell, home line, internet and Optik TV!
These are great tips C! My oldest just bought himself an iPad mini (at age 8) and I wrote a post about locking it down. It’s so scary to think what they have access to and who can have access to them! ( http://myunwrittenlife.com/son-bought-ipad/ )
A tip from the Telus Wise site – Backup the information on your smartphone regularly! I don’t do this often enough.
I think my favourite tip is the one suggesting you change passwords often. I know I don’t do it often enough on my devices.
Thanks
I think it is so important to watch what our kids are doing online. I have heard some pretty awful stories about what have happened because parents were not watching there children online. YOU are the parent make sure you act like it.
Love the tips thanks
Review the permissions before giving permission. This tip to me has to be the most important! Honestly when I am downloading apps there is no reason why I should have to give permission for them to know my location, have access to my photos etc. NO app should make it necessary for you to have to release all this information to them!
Great post! We need more people to be aware of this.
Don’t log in and leave it
my fave tip is to make difficult passwords, and to change them often!
Smart! This is something we all need to remember. I’m so bad at remembering my passwords though!
I think the tips on not being a distracted driver is really important.
In this day and age it’s keeping my family safe on the internet …especially with so much social media
The school internet safety!! Both my boys are in school now and with one in high school its hard to keep a track on what they are doing when not at home.
As a tech savvy parent in 2014, I don’t delude myself into thinking I can keep my little guy away from tech for long. It’s an inevitability. Thanks for sharing these tips, Christine, because I think I’m going to need them!!!
TELUS is pretty awesome. I liked their service a lot. I gotta agree 🙂 I love your tips.
Erica:
I agree! So important to keep kids safe online. I love TELUS too!
It’s true that these little kids are super smart and technology just seems to come naturally to them. I love this post. Online safety is just as important as stranger danger in the neighbourhood.
Oh, yes! Agreed, Pam! Kids can be savvy with technology, but not savvy when it comes to keeping safe online.
Fantastic post Christine. Love these tips and reminders. I continuously make sure my settings are how I want them but when my boys have access to devices I am even more careful.
Thanks so much, Kerrie! I always have it in the back of my mind too. Need to make sure kids are safe online no matter how careful we are.
Kids are getting their hands on technology earlier and earlier, and they pick up the ins and outs of it in no time. sadly, my 8 year old has known more about the tv and playstation than I do for years lol It’s a good thing we’ve got Dad around, he’ll keep the boys tech under close watch!
So true! I am always in shock at how young some kids are and already pros with technology! I only recently let my 5 year old play on her devices…with supervision. Learning how to be tech savvy is important for kids, but I prefer her to be out and about and being active, rather than always on a device. We make sure she has parental controls set on her device and that she only gets 30 min of screen time.
Great post Christine! We have to keep a close eye on our kids and just because they are savvy doesn’t always mean they are savvy enough to know how to be safe online.
You are so right, Patty! Couldn’t have said it better myself!