Protecting kids’ personal information online

Optus Digital Thumbprint has launched the Protecting your identity - Passphrases, passwords and MFA guide to help your kids (especially tweens) protect personal information from hackers and scammers.

Digital Thumbprint’s new guide is designed for kids - particularly those getting their first phone and starting to have some digital Independence and covers how to:

• Create strong passphrases and passwords
• Learn how to use multi-factor authentication
• Know what to do if you’ve been hacked
• Find more help when you need it
   

A strong passphrase or password boosts your online protection and multi-factor authentication (MFA) adds that extra layer of security.

Lots of people have the same password across everything. Don’t feel guilty, but there’s lot of room for improvement as the guide will outline. If your password is your birthday or your pet’s name, you’ll benefit from the tips for stronger security so you can protect your personal information from hackers and scammers.

The following list is the sort of information that we should all protect carefully:

• Full name
• Parents’ names
• Date of birth
• Phone number/s
• Home address
• Location check-ins
• Event RSVPs
• School
• Email address
• Photos
• Usernames, passwords or passphrases
• Bank account details

It pays to be careful with your personal information because if someone has access to it or hacks your account to steal it they can:

• Pretend to be you or your child
• Cyberbully or threaten you or your child
• Try to steal your or your child’s personal identity
• See or share your or your child’s private pictures and personal information
• Change your or your child’s posts or profiles

It’s important to create strong passphrases and passwords and the guide provides clear examples of strong and weak versions.

A few things that your whole family could improve today:

• Strong passphrases are more secure that passwords and should be unpredictable
• They should be different for all your accounts
• Contain a mix of upper-case and lower-case letters, numbers and symbols
• Avoid using your name, birthday, pet’s name or other personal information
• Change your passphrases and passwords regularly
• Keep them somewhere safe or use a password manager
• Keep your devices updated with the latest security downloads

Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is a login process designed to provide additional security for users and their accounts.

A key part of its security is the fact that it asks for two or more of the following:

• Something you know - passwords, answers to secret questions, keystroke patterns, personal identification numbers (PIN)
• Something you have - SMS or email PIN (from authenticator or token-generating apps), ID card, bank card (this might be your parent’s)
• Something you are - Fingerprints, face, eyes, voice (biometrics)

The guide also provides tips for what to do if you’ve been hacked.

To find out more about protecting your identity with passphrases, passwords and MFA see the full guide.

Optus Digital Thumbprint supports digital safety and wellbeing for young people and families. Find out more at www.digitalthumbprint.com.au