Computer and Online Safety

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Computer and Online Safety

• Protecting your privacy and your kids
• Michael Seymour
• IT and Library Director
• Forsyth Country Day School

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Agenda

• Computer Security (Viruses / Spyware)
• Internet Security for Kids
• MySpace and Social Networking

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Virus and Spyware Statistics

• 80 percent of business PCs, and more than 80
  percent of home PCs, have some form of spyware on
  them.About a third of business PCs and more than
  half of home PCs "showed a presence of adware"
• 6 percent of home PCs and 7 percent of business
  PCs had the most dangerous form of
  spyware--keystroke loggers--installed. 16 percent
  of home PCs scanned by Webroot's free SpyAudit
  tool had a remote-access Trojan--a program that
  lets crooks remotely control your PC--installed

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Viruses and Spyware

• Virus A software program designed to damage the
  operating system or forcefully remove data from
  your PC.
• Spyware / Adware A software program designed to
  either track or steal personal information from
  your PC

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What to do

• 1- Have antivirus installed on your PC and make
  sure it updates daily.
• FCDS uses NOD32 www.eset.com
• Free alternatives AVG and AVAST antivirus
• Included on CD

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What to Do 2

• 2 Install Anti-Spyware on your PC.
• Webroots SpySweeper
• Windows Defender (free and included on CD)

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What to do 3

• Have a firewall or router if you use High speed
  Internet. Never connect your PC directly to a
  DSL or cable modem.
• Linksys, Belkin, DLink
• Run a software firewall on your PC.
• Windows Firewall
• Zone Alarm (free) on CD

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Internet Safety How do we protect our kids?
The Facts
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To Catch a Predator

• DateLine NBC

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Dateline NBC

•   Dateline NBC to catch a predator
• of men who showed up
• Outside NYC-area 2004 18 men in 2 1/2 days
• Washington D.C. suburb 2005 19 men in 3 days
• Southern California 2006 50 men in 3 days
• Greenville, Ohio 2006 18 men in 3 days
• Ft. Myers, Florida 2006 24 men in 3 days
• Harris County, Ga. 2006 20 men in 4 1/2 days,
• Petaluma, Calif. 2006 29 men in 3 days

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Cyber Predators

• 20 of high school students have met face to face
  with a person they met online
• 19 of middle school students have met face to
  face with a person they met online
• 10 report the person was not of their own age
• 7 have been asked to keep their relationship
  secret from their parents.
• 13 know they have been fooled about the age of
  someone they met online.

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Cyberbullying

• 22 of students know of someone who was bullied
  online
• 19 of students admit to saying something hurtful
  to others online
• 12 of students report having personally become
  upset by strangers online

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Intellectual Property

• 43 of students have downloaded music from the
  Internet
• 48 of student think they should have the
  unrestricted right to download music from the
  Internet
• 53 think no one is harmed or loses money when
  music or software is downloaded without paying
  for them

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The Myth of Anonymity

• Kids feel that no one is watching when they are
  online online identity
• Kids will say and do things online that they
  would never do in person
• Things they post online have a way of coming back
  (MySpace)

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Digital Divide

• 93 of parents say they have established rules
  for their childs Internet activity
• 37 of kids say they have been given no rules on
  using the Internet
• 26 of kids say their parents would be concerned
  if they knew what they did on the Internet

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What do Parents do?

• Set reasonable rules and guidelines for computer
  use by your children

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Rule 1

• Never give out identifying information home
  address, school name, or telephone number in a
  public message such as chat or newsgroups, and be
  sure youre dealing with someone both you and
  your children know and trust before giving out
  this information via E-mail. Think carefully
  before revealing any personal information such as
  age, financial information, or marital status. Do
  not post photographs of your children in
  newsgroups or on web sites that are available to
  the public. Consider using a pseudonym, avoid
  listing your childs name and E-mail address in
  any public directories and profiles, and find out
  about your ISPs privacy policies and exercise
  your options for how your personal information
  may be used.

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Rule 2

• Get to know the Internet and any services your
  child uses. If you dont know how to log on, get
  your child to show you. Have your child show you
  what he or she does online, and become familiar
  with all the activities that are available
  online. Find out if your child has a free
  web-based E-mail account, such as those offered
  by Hotmail and Yahoo!, and learn their user
  names and passwords.

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Rule 3

• Never allow a child to arrange a face-to-face
  meeting with someone they meet on the Internet
  without parental permission. If a meeting is
  arranged, make the first one in a public place,
  and be sure to accompany your child.

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Rule 4

• Never respond to messages that are suggestive,
  obscene, belligerent, threatening, or make you
  feel uncomfortable. Encourage your children to
  tell you if they encounter such messages. If you
  or your child receives a message that is
  harassing, of a sexual nature, or threatening,
  forward a copy of the message to your ISP, and
  ask for their assistance. Instruct your child not
  to click on any links that are contained in
  E-mail from persons they dont know. Such links
  could lead to sexually explicit or otherwise
  inappropriate web sites or could be a computer
  virus. If someone sends you or your children
  messages or images that are filthy, indecent,
  lewd, or obscene with the intent to abuse, annoy,
  harass, or threaten you, or if you become aware
  of the transmission, use, or viewing of child
  pornography while online immediately report this
  to the NCMECs CyberTipline at 1-800-843-5678 or
  www.cybertipline.com.

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Rule 5

• Remember that people online may not be who they
  seem. Because you cant see or even hear the
  person it would be easy for someone to
  misrepresent him- or herself. Thus someone
  indicating that she is a 12-year-old girl
  could in reality be a 40-year-old man.

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Rule 6

• Remember that everything you read online may not
  be true. Any offer thats too good to be true
  probably is. Be careful about any offers that
  involve you going to a meeting, having someone
  visit your house, or sending money or credit-card
  information.

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Rule 7

• Set reasonable rules and guidelines for computer
  use by your children. Discuss these rules and
  post them near the computer as a reminder.
  Remember to monitor your childrens compliance
  with these rules, especially when it comes to the
  amount of time your children spend on the
  computer. A childs excessive use of online
  services or the Internet, especially late at
  night, may be a clue that there is a potential
  problem. Remember that personal computers and
  online services should not be used as electronic
  babysitters.

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Last Rule

• Check out blocking, filtering, and ratings
  applications. Be sure to make this a family
  activity. Consider keeping the computer in a
  family room rather than the childs bedroom. Get
  to know their online friends just as you get to
  know all of their other friends. If your child
  has a cellular telephone, talk with him or her
  about using it safely. The same rules that apply
  to computer use, also apply to cellular
  telephones.

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What else can I do?

• Investigate web filtering and tracking software
  to protect children from inappropriate content
• URL Blockers Web Filters
• Big Brother Applications
• Firewall Appliance Solutions

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URL Blockers Web Filters

• Traditional Web Filtering software. Blocks usage
  based on URL database or keyword.
• NetNanny, many ISP provided solutions (AOL),
  FCDS own content filter

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Big Brother Applications

• Stealth programs that track computer usage.
• Some will block sites, other just track
• Some record keystrokes
• EBlaster, IAmBigBrother, CyberPatrol,
  PCTattletale (all on CD)

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Firewall Appliance Solutions

• Router or Firewall based filter. Usually
  incorporates URL type blocker
• Linksys, Belkin routers (Parental Control)
• DLink Internet Security Gateway
• https//securespot.bsecure.com/

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MySpace, FaceBook, and Others

• Social Networking sites
• Combine Chat, E-Mail, Blogs, Web Sites, and Video
  all into one platform.
• Searchable by interest, school, or any other
  characteristic entered by the user.
• http//www.myspace.com
• 1 Site for child predators!

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The CD