HOW SAFE ARE YOU ONLINE?
Presented by: Grazielle Joy M. Sibayan
TYPE OF INFORMATION
First Name
• There is a risk in sharing your first name. chances are, a hacker may already know plenty of stuff
about you even you only give your first name. likewise, you cannot just walk in a room and start
introducing yourself to everyone. You do not know whom you can across with.
Last name
• If sharing your first name is a small risk, having both your first and last is riskier. You will be
vulnerable to being searched for using search engines, which include image search. Matching a
name with a face is some modus to severe cybercrimes like identity theft.
Middle name
• Sharing your middle name alone is probably not the riskiest of this shared information, but sharing
your full name would be.
Current and previous schools
• Most people who steal identities study their subject. They can use the information for verifying
purposes.
Cellphone number
• Your cellphone number should never be posted over the internet. The internet is a public place. It is
the same as posting your number on a billboard. You would want random strangers to text or call
you, or worse, pretend that they are someone else.
Name of your parents
Prepared by: Maria Christina L. Almendra
• Risky, yet not risky as posting their full names, especially your mother’s maiden name. In fact, you
may have already encountered many websites that require your mother’s maiden name as an
answer to a secret question whenever you lose your password.
Name of your siblings
• Disclosing this is a huge risk. Strangers may pretend or use their identity to dupe you.
Home address
• Hopefully, you answered “no” to this one. Giving your number is one thing, giving them your
address is a whole other level. It would be much easier for criminals to find you.
Home phone number
• This shared information is riskier than sharing your personal phone number. Scams usually use this
information to deceive you, one of which is when a stranger pretends to know your parents or
pretends to be you.
Birthday
• Letting people know your birthday is probably a must if you want to get as many gifts as possible.
But having it in your profile makes you vulnerable to identity theft.
NOTE: Internet is an information superhighway because people have all the
access to use it so be careful of what you are sharing online.
Prepared by: Maria Christina L. Almendra
The Internet
TIPS TO STAY SAFE ONLINE
1. Be mindful of what you share online and what site you share it to.
2. Do not accept terms and condition, read it.
3. Check out the privacy policy page of a website to learn how the website handles the
information you share.
4. Know the security features of the social networking sites you use. By keeping your profile
private, search engines will not be able to scan your profile.
5. Do not share your password to anyone.
6. Avoid logging in to public networks/Wi-Fi. Browsing in “incognito (private) mode”, a feature of
the browser, will not protect you from hackers.
7. Do not talk to strangers, whether online or face-to-face.
8. Never post anything about a future vacation. It is similar to posting. “Rob my house at this
date.”
9. Add friends you know in real life.
10. Avoid visiting untrusted websites.
11. Install and update antivirus software on your computer. Use only one.
12. If you have Wi-Fi at home, make it private network by adding a password.
13. Avoid downloading anything from untrusted websites. You are most vulnerable in peer-to-peer
downloads (torrents) as the download is most likely not monitored by the site owner.
14. Buy the software; do not use pirated ones.
15. Do not reply or click links from suspicious emails.
EXPLORATION: PRIVACY POLICIES
• Visit social networking sites and look for the site’s privacy policy. The link is typically found at the
bottom of the page and sometimes labeled only as “Privacy”. Write a summary on how the website
handles both your private and public.
Prepared by: Maria Christina L. Almendra
