Internet safety

Staying safe online.

Between catfishing, account hacking and viruses, there are plenty of things that we need to try to protect ourselves from online. Luckily, there are lots of things we can do to help prevent these things from happening.

We do so much online these days, from dating to shopping to banking. All of these things can often make our lives a whole lot easier but with these new ways of doing things come extra responsibility to protect ourselves online!

Keep your profiles protected:

• When setting up new profiles on social media or forums, don’t use your whole name. Pick a username that you’ll remember but that won’t give away too much personal information.
• When chatting to new people online, be very wary of people who seem desperate to meet you or annoy you for your phone number.
• Never give out personal details online like your surname, phone number or where you live.
• Don’t tell people where you go to school, college or work. If someone constantly asks for personal details ignore them.
• It’s best to avoid sending photos of yourself, friends or family.
• Try not to give out your email address too often. You can end up with lots of junk mail or people harassing you.
• If you’re sure you want to meet an online friend then BE CAREFUL. Always tell someone where you’re going and arrange to meet him or her in a public place. Think about asking a friend to come with you for the first meeting.
• Use two-step verification for your email accounts.

Protecting your devices:

• Always have a password to log in to your smartphone or laptop, just in case they fall into the wrong hands. It might help minimise the damage that can be caused by having your device stolen.
• Make super strong passwords for all your login details. Use a mixture of letters and numbers, upper-case and lower-case, and punctuation.
• Keep any anti-virus programmes up to date as much as possible.
• Avoid dodgy websites or dodgy Wi-Fi connections; they can often lead to suspicious pop-ups or malware.

Get more useful tips on Financial Security, Social Media safety and Bullying.