Digital citizenship is the ability to to use technology and the internet under a safe and comforting environment.
How to be safe online?
To be safe online, make sure that you leave a good digital footprint. remember that everything you do or visit can be traced back to you one way or another. Never put any private information about you as people can take the information and sell it for money on the dark web.
Always be aware of the information you use and check for copyright laws, sometimes you need to pay to use the information but students and people alike should all be able to find cheap and reliable sources for any project they are doing.
Here are some tips for being safe online:
- Make sure you have long passwords so hackers can’t get into your account.
- Not everything people send you or show you may be true try to avoid meeting face to face unless you actually know the person.
- Don’t share photos because they can expose your location and who you are by licence plates or city landmarks.
- You MUST learn to gain permission for using property you found online, once you get permission, you must cite your sources and give credit.
- Always be aware that anything you post on the internet can be accessed years from now whether if you want them to or not.
- Cyber bullying often happens online:
- Always delete, block, or try to ignore mean texts when/if encountered.
- Report them to a trusted parent/administrator especially if they come along with threats.
- Never visit sites that are unsafe or unreliable. Generally, blogs do not have reliable information because anyone can write them.
- Be careful of what you download, sometimes, viruses can be downloaded onto your computer on accident.
- Ads can sometimes be scams that steal your online identity.
Digital Citizenship
Always check if the site is a real site or not, some sites are made to steal and take your email information. Never sign up for something you’re not sure if you want it or not. Always check with an adult before you sign up for something that requires your private information. Never put in your real name or your real birthday because then they could use that information to find you. Also, never meet with someone who you only know online, they could always lie to you about any information given to you.
Always make sure that you care about your health when you are sitting in front of a screen. You never want to stay in the same position for a long time because it could hurt your posture. When you are sitting in front of your screen, blink a lot more because it will increase the amount of tears you have in your eyes. Look around outside to help your neck and finally, walk around and move when you feel like you need to. You are never bound to your screen.
Today, at least 3.4 billion people are on the internet at any given moment, most kids and teens are on the internet gaming, or visiting YouTube to check the latest trends and music video. At least 90 percent of America’s population have done online shopping and at least 47 percent do online shopping at least once a month. Never save your password on a website, especially if that website needs credit card information because those can get hacked and stolen by hackers. Online statistics tell us that there is a hacker at work every 39 seconds.
Online Statistics
- Cyber crime is more profitable that the global illegal drug trade
- 66 percent of business that get attacked aren’t sure they can recover from the attack
- The cyber security budget for the US was $14.98 billion in 2019
- Russian hackers can infiltrate a computer network in 18 minutes
- Hackers are the average American’s biggest fear
- Up until March 2019, more than $14 billion data records have been stolen
- Cyber crime costed the world over $600 billion
- You can buy a Netflix account for as low as $1.25 on the dark market
Digital Citizenship Blog 