Next week is Get Safe Online Week (20 – 26 October) and this year the theme is online crime.
Organised by Get Safe Online, a partnership between the Government, the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA), Ofcom and private sector sponsors, Get Safe Online Week aims to educate, inform and raise awareness of internet security issues to encourage confident, safe use of the internet.
The year’s theme focuses on the growing threat of online crime, raising awareness of issues such as fraud, identity theft, hacking, viruses and abuse. With the aim of highlighting the things we can do to protect ourselves against online crime, Get Safe Online are launching new research about attitudes to and experiences of online crime, alongside important advice on how to stay safe on your computer, smartphone, tablet or games console.
Helping young people protect themselves against online crime is an important issue for Childnet. Whether accessing information online via a computer, phone or tablet it is important young people know what they might be signing up to. This Get Safe Online Week, we’re sharing our top tips for keeping safe and secure online.
Childnet’s Top Security Tips
- Use different passwords for different activities online; and never share your password, even with a friend.
- Treat your phone number like your credit card. Unless you are really confident you know how a website will use your number, don’t enter it online, as you could end up being charged.
- Be careful of things that sound too good to be true. When you come across adverts claiming you can win prizes, be careful if you enter them, and never give out your phone number.
- Only download software or apps from trusted sources.
- If you receive spam, do not reply and don’t click on any links. Never give away account details or personal information.
- Be careful of posts or ads that look like they are from friends on social networks. Is it something a friend would say? If not, it might be best to avoid it.
To find out more about how to keep your information secure, you can visit Childnet’s Sorted, plus check out the PhoneBrain site to find out how to avoid falling into any traps that might run up a big bill on your phone.
To raise awareness of these issues Get Safe Online are encouraging everyone to set up a Get Safe Online Week event. This could be coffee morning to discuss positive or negative online experiences and help your friends, family and neighbours to become safer online. To find out more about Get Safe Online Week visit the website www.getsafeonline.org