Tips on how to stay safe online

1)      Don’t post any personal information online – like your address, email address or mobile number.

2)      Think carefully before posting pictures or videos of yourself.  Once you’ve put  a picture of yourself online most people can see it and may be able to download it, it’s not just yours anymore.

3)      Keep your privacy settings as high as possible

4)      Never give out your passwords

5)      Don’t befriend people you don’t know

6)      Don’t meet up with people you’ve met online.  Speak to your parent or carer about people suggesting you do

7)      Remember that not everyone online is who they say they are

8)      Think carefully about what you say before you post something online

9)      Respect other people’s views, even if you don’t agree with someone else’s views doesn’t mean you need to be rude

10)     If you see something online that makes you feel uncomfortable, unsafe or worried: leave the website, turn off your computer if you want to and tell a trusted adult immediately.

 11)    Kick-butt passwords. Do away with the “Fitguy1982” password and use an extremely uncrackable one like 9&4yiw2pyqx#. Phrases are good too. Regularly change passwords and don’t use the same passwords for critical accounts. For more tips on how to create strong passwords, go to http://passwordday.org/

 12)     Protect your info. Keep your guard up. Back up all of your  data on your computer, smartphone and tablet in the event of loss, theft or a crash. Also, routinely check your various financial statements for questionable activity.

13)     Watch your Wi-Fi connectivity. Protect your network by changing your router’s default settings and making sure you have the connection password-protected. For more information on how to protect your Wi-Fi connection, click here.

14)     Install a firewall. A firewall is a great line of defense against cyber-attacks. Although most operating systems come with a firewall, you might want to consider installing McAfee LiveSafe™service which has a much better firewall than the one that comes built into your operating system.

15)      Keep up to date. The best security software updates automatically to protect your computer. Use the manufacturer’s latest security patches to make regular updates and make sure that you have the software set to do routine scans