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Considering the historic levels of data breaches during the past few years, fraud and identity crimes are a threat to families everywhere. While adults may know that they need to take precautions to protect their personally identifiable information (PII), making sure your children understand the same safety steps is just as important.
Children may seem immune to the risk of fraud and identity theft since they don’t hold any assets in their name, yet that’s exactly why identity criminals target them. The blank slate of your child’s identity means criminals can use it to open a new credit card, rent a place to live or apply for government assistance. The fact few parents monitor their children’s PII means criminals can misuse the stolen identity for years without being detected.
The risk of child identity theft is real. From July 2021 to July 2022, 1 in 80 children were affected by identity fraud, with their families experiencing more than $600 million in total losses.
When it comes to protecting your family, there are precautions you and your children should become familiar with as they navigate today’s digital world. Different age groups have different concerns as their access to the internet and online independence grows.
While you are officially considered a digital native if you were born after 1980, today’s children are more tech savvy and spend more time online than any generation prior. It is not uncommon to see a 5-year-old playing games on their parent’s smartphone in a waiting room, and many have their own smart device. In fact, 81% of parents with a child 11 or younger has reported allowing them access to a smartphone or tablet.
With younger children especially, keeping a close eye on the content they are consuming and restricting their app access is the best precaution. Over 16% of parents with children aged 5-11 have reported not limiting or monitoring their child’s screentime. Any sort of access to a tablet or smartphone can increase your child’s risk to accessing unsafe websites. If your child is using your device to play games or watch a YouTube video, it would not be too difficult for them to mistakenly share your email or phone number, create an account or download unsafe apps by using the information that is automatically stored in your phone.
Many apps and social media platforms have child locks or screen time limits you can activate for when you do not have time to be looking over your child’s shoulder. Most children at this age will be unknowing when it comes to entering personal data or playing on apps they are not supposed to, so keeping a close eye on their activity is the best way to protect not only their data, but your own.
This age group can be when the risks get more complicated. Nearly 75% of children receive their first smartphone by age 12 and kids this age commonly have their own email addresses and phone numbers. Similarly, most popular social media platforms allow users to start their accounts at age 13 — and about 90% of U.S. households have children who are actively using social media.
In general, tweens and teens have more information online, all of which they need to learn how to protect.
A strong starting point for ensuring your child is navigating the web safely is to explain the importance of app permissions on their devices. When downloading a new app, there’s typically a set of permissions the user will have to grant before installation. The three big ones to watch for are camera, location and microphone. Unless these functions are needed for the app to work properly, you should advise your child to never grant these permissions.
Secondly, engage in open conversations with your teenager regarding the type of things they are sharing online. Help them understand that nothing on the internet is truly private, and oversharing on social media is not only dangerous but can make you more prone to theft or fraud. The pause-before-you-post rule is a great habit to practice, as this encourages your child to consider whether their fun social media post may include too much personal information that could easily fall into the wrong hands.
Cyberbullying is a serious online threat, and this age group is typically the prime target. Cyberbullying is defined as the harassment or threatening to another individual through online means, whether that be through text or social media. Nearly half of teens 13 to 17 reported experiencing a cyberbullying incident. Kids who have little restrictions while online will accept friend requests from people they do not know or share too much information on social media that could lead to a cyberbully or acts of extortion.
Some key tells your child might be a victim of cyberbullying include:
Preparing your children for their first taste of adulthood can be bittersweet. With the increase in remote learning and the use of technology in the classroom, there are specific cybersecurity tips you can discuss with your college students to keep their information safe:
As much as you might help prepare your child, your child’s information can still be at risk from threats outside your control. If you suspect your child’s identity has been compromised, there are a few recommendations to consider:
Talking openly about the dangers of the internet with your child can help them understand the actual risks online. The best approach is to discuss the realities of these threats frankly without resorting to scare tactics that they might dismiss as their parent being overly protective. The goal is to help them become savvy online citizens who can still have fun with their friends online while protecting themselves at the same time.
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