Indiana State Troopers Ryan White and Randall VanArsdale recently visited students at McCormick's Creek Elementary School to discuss Internet safety. School Resource Officers William Browne and Opie Rhienhart were also on hand to assist with the presentation.
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Internet Safety Tips for Parents/Guardians:
1. Make sure websites are secure
You can instantly tell if any website is safe by looking for one letter: “s.” Every website address starts with the letters “http,” but you know a site is secure when you see “https.” That means the website itself is taking measures to keep users and their information secure while they use the site.
If you’re directed to any websites for school or entertainment that don’t have that extra “s” at the beginning of the address, steer clear.
2. Guard personal information
This can get tricky when your child needs to be identified for schoolwork or classroom discussions, but personal details need to be guarded closely.
Chances are, your child probably already has a student identification number. Those kinds of identifiers are a great way to protect personal details from leaking on the internet.
None of the following information should be used to identify your child in class, on a list of posted grades, or in an online discussion.
Full first and last name
Social security number
Birthdate
Address
Phone number
Photograph
3. Set up parental controls
You don’t have to purchase parental control software to protect your child during online learning. There are already a lot of helpful tools built into your device hardware, software, and internet browser.
4. Keep everything updated
It seems too simple to be so effective, but one of the best ways to keep kids safe online is to make sure that all devices, software, and firmware are up to date.
Updates can seem like a pain, but one of the biggest reasons companies come out with new versions is to deploy security patches that address the most recent and innovative threats out there.
Plus, an outdated operating system or old version of software can render your parental controls and privacy settings useless.