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Online Safety How could we live without our smartphones, laptops, and other devices that allow us to go online? That's how most of us keep in touch with friends and family, take pictures, do our homework, do research, find out the latest news, and even shop. Online teen safety guide The online world offers a wealth of resources for education, entertainment, and connection with other people. Unfortunately, the internet also poses new dangers, and those dangers threaten teens especially.

How could we live without our smartphones, laptops, and other devices that allow us to go online? That's how most of us keep in touch with friends and family, take pictures, do our homework, do research, find out the latest news, and even shop.

But besides the millions of sites to visit and things to do, going online offers lots of ways to waste time — and even get into trouble. But some people you meet online might try to take advantage of you, steal your personal information, or harass or threaten you (called cyberbullying).

You might know people who got into trouble for something they did online — whether it was sexting, bullying on a website or message app, or getting ripped off by someone they met online.

Because users can remain anonymous, popular websites and messaging apps might attract adults who pretend to be teens or kids. They'll sometimes ask visitors for pictures or information about themselves, their families, or where they live — information that shouldn't be given away.

Usually, people who ask for personal information like home addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses use this information to fill mailboxes and answering machines with ads. In some cases, though, predators use it to begin illegal or indecent relationships or to harm a person or family.

Being Smart Online

First rule: Check your mood! Are you feeling upset or angry? Then it's not the time to be messaging or posting on a social media site. People don't always make good decisions or think straight when they're stressed out or upset. If you have to, call someone or go for a run instead before you start venting online.

Second rule: When you're on a website, try to remain as anonymous as possible. That means keeping all private information private. Private information that you should never allow the public to see includes:

• your full name
• any type of photograph (even of your pet!)
• your current location (some phones have automatic GPS apps built in that may need to be turned off)
• home or school address or the address of any of your family or friends
• phone numbers
• Social Security number
• passwords
• names of family members
• credit card numbers

Most trustworthy people and companies won't ask for this type of information online. So if others do, it's a red flag that they may be up to no good. Always check with a parent if you are unsure, especially when shopping online or signing up for a website or app.

Think carefully before you create an email address or screen name. Use a combination of letters and numbers in both that don't identify whether you're male or female.

When messaging or using video apps, use a nickname that's different from your screen name. That way, if you ever find yourself in a conversation that makes you uncomfortable, you can exit without having to worry that someone knows your screen name and can track you down via email. Some people who hang out with their friends online set up private groups where only they and the people they invite can interact.

Keep online friendships in the virtual world. Meeting online friends face to face carries more risks than other types of friendships because it's so easy for people to pretend to be something they're not when you can't see them or talk in person. It's safer to video message with someone first, but even that can carry some risks. Check with a parent that this is a safe thing for you to be doing. They may want to meet some of your contacts or sit in on a conversation before they allow you to do this by yourself.

If you ever get involved in any messaging or online chats that make you feel uncomfortable or in danger for any reason, exit and tell a parent or other adult right away so they can report it. You also can report it to the website of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children — they have a form for reporting this type of incident called CyberTipline. They'll make sure the info is forwarded to law enforcement officials for investigation.

What Is Cyberbullying?

It's not just strangers who can make you feel uncomfortable. Cyberbullying refers to cruel or bullying messages sent to you online. These might be from former friends or other people you know. They can also be sent anonymously — in other words, on a website where everyone has a screen name, so teens being bullied might not even know who is bullying them.

If you get these bullying messages online, it's often better to ignore them rather than answer them. Cyberbullies, just like other bullies, might be looking for attention or a reaction. Plus, you never want to provoke bullies. By ignoring them, you can take away their power. You also can try to delete or block bullies so you no longer see their texts.

Fortunately, most people never experience cyberbullying. But if you're getting cyberbullied and ignoring it doesn't make it stop, getting help from a parent, school counselor, or another trusted adult might be a good idea. That's especially true if the cyberbullying contains threats.

Other Things to Consider

Although email is relatively private, hackers can still access it — or add you to their spam lists. Spam, like ads or harassing or offensive notes, is annoying. But spam blockers can keep your mailbox from getting clogged. Many service providers will help you block out or screen inappropriate emails if your parents agree to set up age-appropriate parental controls.

If you don't recognize the sender of a document or file that needs to be downloaded, delete it without opening it to avoid getting a virus on your device. Virus protection software is a must for every computer and should be updated regularly. You also can buy software that helps rid your computer of unwanted spyware programs that report what your computer is doing. Some service providers make software available to protect you from these and other online annoyances, such as blockers for those in-your-face pop-up ads.

When you're out and about with your devices, keep them secure. Don't let other people use your phone unless you're with them. Don't leave your phone where someone else might pick it up, and turn your laptop or tablet off when you're not using it. Don't make it easy for other people to get a look at your personal information.

Finally, remember that any pictures or text messages that you send could be leaked as soon as you hit send. Think about whether the words you've written or the pictures you're about to share are ones that you would want other people reading or seeing. A good rule is that if you wouldn't want your grandmother to see it or read it, you probably shouldn't send it or post it.

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It is possible to be safe while browsing the internet, but some common sense needs to be in place. Predators, bullies, and those who would use personal information for ill intent are everywhere online today.

95% of social media-using teens who have witnessed cruel behavior on social networking sites say they have seen others ignoring the mean behavior.

Internet Safety

What this means is that people are trying to stick to themselves online. They don’t step in to lend a helping hand when it is needed. This means for the 55% of online users who see abuse happening frequently online, there is no place to turn for help. That’s why having an increased awareness of internet safety is so important.

• The number of children between the ages of 6-17 who say they’ve been exposed to hardcore pornography while browsing online: 42%.
• 29%. That’s the percentage of parents that allow their children to use the internet without restriction or supervision.
• 1 in 20. That’s the number of children who will meet strangers online and then arrange a secret meeting with them.
• The percentage of children who pretend to be older while browsing online than they really are: 25%.
• 1 in 12 kids have exchanged messages with strangers that were sexual in nature.
• The number of kids ages 6-17 who say they have sent graphic photographs of themselves online at least once: 1 in 25.
• A study by McAfee, found that 87% of teens have observed cyberbullying.

If something goes onto the internet, then it is going to stay on the internet for good. It might hit the dark net or it might be privately saved and stored, but it is going to be somewhere for public consumption. That’s why teaching kids about the need to be safe while online is so important. Children could very literally ruin their lives before they even get started. Setting up firewalls, monitoring computer activity, and receiving danger alerts for personal information sharing are all easy ways that parents can increase the safety profiles of their children.

Predators Are Everywhere Online Today

• Only 18% of youth will use an online chat room today, but almost all internet-based sexually based offenses against children are started in a chat room.
• Since it’s creation, the number of child pornography images that have been analyzed by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children: 80 million.
• 82% of predators will use social networking websites to determine what their victim likes and dislikes to make the encounter proceed more smoothly.
• 65% of online sex offenders used the victim’s social networking site to gain home and school information about the victim.
• Just 1 in 3 sexual crimes are reported to a trusted adult.
• At least 200 million girls and 100 million boys will be sexually victimized before they reach adulthood.
• 26% of online sex offenders used a victim’s social networking site to gain information about the victim’s whereabouts at a specific time.
• 4 out of 10 online sexual solicitors online is under the age of 18.
• 13% of 2nd-3rd grade students report that they used the Internet to talk to people they do not know and 11% of those kids say that they were asked to describe private things about their bodies.
• It takes 60 seconds or less, on average, for a predator to contact a potential new victim.
• Although unverified, it is believed that 40% of the missing children that are reported to authorities had a first contact with a predator in a chat room.

When we talk about internet safety, we tend to discuss keeping personal ID numbers and other data secret. What we overlook is the fact that our children today are trusting of many people, don’t like to keep secrets, and believe that all people are generally good. In a perfect world, this would be so. This isn’t a perfect world and there are children routinely exploited because of their innocence. This is why paying attention to current internet safety statistics is so important. It is the best way to discover how people are trying to get at kids today so they can be stopped.

Are We Selling Our Online Safety?

• 16% of all US adults state that they would be welling to share their online habits in exchange for receiving a better overall browsing experience.
• Two-thirds of Americans are willing to give companies access to their personal information to receive discounts, better products, or better services.
• People are more likely to share their mobile phone number online [71%] than they are to share their web browser history [61%].
• Internet users are more likely to trust a social network with their personal data [42%] than they are a search engine [35%].
• 82%. That’s the percentage of US adults who believe that wearable technology will create internet safety concerns.
• Only 39% of US consumers are concerned about the data that cookies are able to obtain about their online habits.
• Only half of people who access the internet regularly will regularly read privacy policies when they are offered.

We’ve all either seen it happen or have done it ourselves. When the window pops up for the privacy policy, the box that acknowledges that it has been read is just automatically clicked. Why waste time reading about privacy concerns when there’s an app to install, right? The only problem with this is that sometimes those privacy policies are as cut-and-dried as people think they are. Many hidden surprises can be lurking in the fine print regarding internet privacy and since the box has been clicked and approved, the contract has been signed. We need to pay more attention to what we agreed to do and treat our personal information less as a commodity and more as a part of who we actually are.

Your Apps Could Be Exposing Your Personal Information

• In a 2012 study of downloaded apps, 18.6% of them were able to access a user’s address book, including the personal contact details that had been saved to each entry.
• 1 in 3 apps has been given permission to display ads directly to users, even if the app isn’t active at that point in time.
• 42% of apps that send data out to third parties do not make any effort to encrypt that data.
• The percentage of apps that are authorized to track the locations of users, even when running in the background: 41.4%.
• 16%. That’s the percentage of apps that are allowed to post to Facebook as the user regarding app activities.

“This app wants to connect to Facebook, access your public profile, your friends list, and your personal contact information.” It seems so easy to click the “OK” button when that pops up, right? The app has been downloaded, it might have cost a few bucks to get it, and you’re excited to try it out. The only problem is that with the modern app, not only could you be selling your own data, but you could be throwing your friends under the bus as well. Privacy controls can help to prevent this, but more than half of Americans don’t know how to improve the security of their profiles. When it comes to internet safety, we really are our own worst enemy.

When Are We Most Concerned About Our Internet Safety?

• 71% of internet users say that they are concerned about their internet safety and privacy when accessing bank account information or financial data.
• The percentage of internet users who are concerned with internet safety while shopping: 57%.
• Internet users are 4x more likely to be concerned about their internet safety when accessing bank accounts when compared to accessing pornography.
• Only 10% of internet users are concerned about internet safety as they are looking up information about a past romantic relationship.
• 27% of people think about internet safety when they reference themselves in some way while online.
• 32% of kids in their teens hide their browsing history from their parents or guardians to try to prevent them from seeing which sites they visit.
• The percentage of teens that have a hidden email address or social networking account: 16%.
• 11% of kids who have access to the internet say that they know how to turn off the installed parental controls.

It is easy to blame everyone else for the lack of safety that is available on the internet today, but the fact is that we’re doing this all to ourselves. All it takes is one moment of trust for a child to access something online that they shouldn’t access. It is that one moment that can change a life forever. The same is true with adults. One Craigslist advertisement, one ill-advised social media post, or one mean-spirited individual can ruin a reputation or even take a life. Internet safety can be improved, but we have to do it at the individual level. Knowing internet safety statistics like these is a good first step.

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