Family and Child Online Safety Blog - SafetyClicks

Here are 10 tips to help you surf the Web safely. Share any other tips you have in the comments.

10 - Who Wants To Know? When you are registering with web sites that ask for information that you don't think it makes sense for them to have, double check it how that informaiton could be used. For example, most of the time when you are commenting, or interacting in some way, it is normal for a site to ask for your email address. But if you are not buying anything, it is not normal to ask for payment information.

9 - Who Are You? It is important to not lie about your identity, but also not reveal too much. It is OK to tell your real first name and age. It is normally OK to share your home state. It is a bad idea to give your address, phone number, or any personally identifiable information to people you don't know in real life.

8 - Sticks and Stones: I have been called many names, by many people - some not so flattering. Many times the best way to stop a bully is to ignore them. Reputable communication tools have the ability to block or ignore users including AOL's Instant Messenger (AIM) and e-mail systems, Facebook, Bebo, MySpace and Twitter. Use them. Love them. It can help save your sanity.

7 - Just Say No: Kids should be taught to get an adult whenever they see something online that makes them uncomfortable. Whatever makes you uncomfortable should be reported, then you blocked so that person cannot contact you again.

6 - Keep It To Yourself: Never share your password (the ONLY exception is that young children should share passwords with their parents). Best friends, boyfriends, girlfriends, or neighbors should not know nor be able to guess your passwords. Passwords should include numbers and letters and be strong enough that no one can guess it (birthdays, pet names and school mascots are popular passwords). It is also a good idea to have a different password for each login you have. Then if one is guessed, all logins are not at risk. Here are some tips on making a strong passwords.

5 - Don't Get Caught In Phishing Scams: some web sites are trustworthy, some are not. If you are shopping, sites that have a physical location (such as Target.com) and popular sites that you have heard a lot about (such as Amazon.com) are generally more trustworthy than a site you have never heard from. If you want to buy something from a site you have never heard of, it is a good idea to use paypal.com or a similar service that works as a go-between for you and the site you are buying from. You share your financial information with paypal (a reputable site) and they get the money to the person on the other end - instead of you sharing your financial information with someone you don't know. Buying from that person might be 100% safe, but there is no way to be certain without experience. Here is a video from McAffee that may also help.

4 - BFFs: Social networking sites are great places to keep in touch with people you already know in real life. If you choose to communicate with people online that you have only talked to online, that can be safe. Just remember that you don't actually know them in real life and it is very easy to hide behind a computer screen and not tell the whole truth. If you (an adult) do choose to meet someone that you've only met online previously, make sure it is in a public place and you bring along other people with you , or that you at least let someone trustworthy know your plans. Kids should probably not meet someone in person and if they do, parents should always be involved.

3 - Don't Get Sick: In an effort to steal your password or just to be malicious, people send viruses through email, social networks and on web sites that are made to look legit. To protect yourself, make sure you run an anti-virus scan very regularly and be careful about what you download and what you click on. If you get a "special message" from your Facebook friend or an e-mail from your Aunt Trudy, and it is out of character for him/her to do it - it might not be legitimate. It is best to not download the file or click on the link until you check. For more information, you can also check out AOL's security offerings.

2 - Who Are You? User names can be almost anything you want it to be, but you aren't as anonymous as you think you are. People who know you, know it is you with just a few comments. Also, every time you sign in, you are linked into an IP address. This address is just a series of numbers, but it points to where in the world you are connected to the Internet.

1 - Just Think: Your best tool for online safety is using good old fashioned common sense. Nothing I write about on this blog is earth shattering. It is the same things we all know - we just need to be reminded every once in a while.

Do you have any other ideas on how to keep safe on the Internet?