Back to School: Teaching Children About Cybersecurity

Back to School: Teaching Children About Cybersecurity

Author: Jeff Weeks, Senior Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer

Talking to your children about online safety is always important, but it is especially vital when a new school year gets underway. This article will help you teach cybersecurity to your children.

Instill the significance of using secure passwords. Make sure your children understand the value of creating strong, one-of-a-kind passwords for all their internet accounts. Tell them not to disclose their passwords and explain how to make a strong password using a combination of capital and lowercase characters, numbers, and symbols.

Talk about internet security. Children must learn that certain things are not meant to be shared online. It is never appropriate to disclose someone's full name, address, phone number, or school name online. Make sure the apps they download do not track their location and let them know that they should notify you if someone asks for their personal information online or that of their friends or relatives.

Educate about how to identify and avoid phishing scams. Describe phishing and the ways con artists entice victims to click on harmful links or divulge personal information. Instruct them to avoid clicking on links from unidentified sources.

Establish downloading guidelines. Teach your children to never download files, programs, or attachments from untrusted sources. Malware might be present in these.

Establish open communication. Tell your children that if they come across something on the internet that bothers them or looks questionable, they may always talk to you.

Update apps and software. Remind your children that software and app updates typically include security vulnerability fixes, which make them crucial to keep current.

Make use of parental controls. Employ parental controls to keep an eye on your child's online activities and to block offensive information. But, in order to keep your children safe online, don't depend just on these resources.

Learning cybersecurity is a continuous process. Encourage your children to ask questions and have regular conversations with them about internet safety. We can work together to make the internet a safer place for our children.

About the Author

Jeff has been with First National Bank of Omaha for more than 25 years and is currently the Senior Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer. The executive leadership and oversight provided by Jeff in the development, management, and execution of information security for FNBO enables the company’s ability to posture and protect private, personal information, and assets of the company’s clients, employees, and business partners.