Internet Safetyfor

Children and FamiliesBarry Caplin

Chief Information Security OfficerMinnesota Department of Human Services

barry.caplin@state.mn.us

Slides on InfoLink

• Please… answer questions!

Interactive

• Please… ask questions!

Disclaimer

I’m still figuring out this

Parenting thing also…

The Internet is a Great Place!

• Instant Communications– e-mail, chat, school, club and company web sites

• News, Reference and Research– every major newspaper/magazine/print resource is online

– encyclopedias

– curriculum

• Entertainment– movie guides, music, online videos and much more

• Shopping– Shop, find plane schedules and travel bargains, sell via the net

Most People Have Good Experiences

• Most have no serious problems

• Far more great sites than inappropriate/malicious

• Ways to minimize risk and maximize benefits

• Far greater risk in the “off-line” world than online

But...

• Online = Public

• The Internet is not a Baby Sitter

• "On the Internet no one knows you're a Dog“ – The New Yorker, Peter Steiner, July 5, 1993

• Who else is online?

Facts

Online Behavior: Teens and Technology• 60% have a computer/laptop• 97% play computer games• 93% use the Internet• 30% write blogs• 70% use Social Networking Sites• 40% have video cameras (& 25% upload/75%

download)• 75% have a cell phone

Pew Internet and American Life Project, 2009

Facts

New research on online predators:• Myth: Internet predators driving up child sex

crime rates. – Finding: Sex assaults on teens fell 52% 1993-2005.

"The Internet may not be as risky as a lot of other things…“

• Myth: Internet predators are a new dimension of child sexual abuse.– Finding: Only the means of communication is new.

• Myth: Internet predators trick or abduct victims.– Finding: Most victims meet online offenders f2f and go

expecting to engage in sex. Nearly ¾’s more than once."Online 'Predators' and Their Victims“, American Psychologist 2/26/08

Facts

New research on online predators:• Myth: Internet predators meet their victims by

posing online as other teens.– Finding: Only 5% did that.

• Myth: Online interactions with strangers are risky.– Finding: Many teens interact online all the time with

people they don't know. What's risky is giving out names, phone numbers and pictures to strangers and talking online with them about sex.

"Online 'Predators' and Their Victims“, American Psychologist 2/26/08

Putting it into Perspective

If one child is abducted, molested, harassed or even made to feel uncomfortable on the Internet, than that’s one child too many. However, statistically, it’s one of the safest places for kids to “hang out.” Consider ...

National SafeKids Campaign

Putting it into Perspective

Each year, more than 6,600 children ages 14 and under die and another 120,000 are permanently disabled from motor vehicle crashes, drowning, fire and burns, airway obstruction injury, unintentional firearm injury, falls, poisoning and other injury risk areas. One out of four children sustains injuries serious enough to require medical attention each year.

National SafeKids Campaign

What are the Risks?

Who’s in the Neighborhood?

• Internet has:– porn sites– hate sites– pirated software, music, movies– viruses and malicious downloads– spyware– scams and data collection sites

• Harassment and legal/financial risks

Who’s in the Neighborhood?

• Spyware and Malware most often found on:– porn sites– game sites– Social Networking Sites!

What Are They Doing?• Blogging (who’s posting?)

• Wiki

• Email (who’s in their address book?)

• IM (who’s in their buddy list?)

• Music/video

• Web 2.0– Social Networks and Communities (who is in their friends

list?)

– Tagging – del.icio.us (delicious.com/bcaplin)

– Mashups – frappr

The ‘Net Never Forgets

• Anything posted remains for a long time

• Caching/Archiving

• Who else might view your blog, php, site?:– College admissions officials

– Job interviewers

Bullying – Old School

• Physical – schoolyard, hallway, locker room, bathroom

• Verbal – rumors, taunting

• Written – notes, walls

• Don’t share your locker combo!

Online Bullying – New School

• www.stopcyberbullying.org

• Don’t share your password!

• Supplements the “old fashioned” kind

• Available 24x7

• Victims won’t tell – don’t want access cut off

What to do…

• Educate your kids– To respect others

– To take a stand

– To not respond to cyberbullies

• Communicate– Be the trusted resource

• No “catch-all” fix – but many resources

Social Networks• Xanga.com

• MySpace.com

• FaceBook.com

• Friendster.com

• MyYearbook.com

• Tagged.com

• Tagworld.com

• Bolt.com

• Bebo.com

• Orkut.com …

Social Networks

Facebook

• Over 50M US users(70M in 5/09 surpasses Myspace!)• Over 100M Worldwide

Twitter

• Microblogging

• 3rd biggest SNS ~23M

• Fastest growing

• Changing media paradigm

It’s Getting Better!

• Inappropriate sites still out there

• bots, spam, pop-ups, but…

• Bad stuff not automatic

• COPPA– 9/7/06 Xanga.com $1M fine for violation –

“collected, maintained, and disclosed” information of >1M kids <13 on its general audience website

It’s Getting Better!

• State Attorneys General agreement with– MySpace – Jan 2008

– Facebook – May 2008

– Automated warning, some technical restrictions, faster action on inappropriate content, agreements with third parties

It’s Getting Better!

• 66% of teens say that their profile is not visible to all Internet users.

• Among those visible to all, 46% false information on their profiles for protection but also for fun.

• 91% of teens are using networks to stay in touch with people they already know and see often, 82% for friends that they rarely see.

Teen, Privacy & Online Social Networks. Pew Internet & American Life Project, April, 2007

Two Words…

Eden Prairie

Sexting

Sex + texting

Sexting

• Texts/attachments not private

• Currently considered child porn

• Tunkhannock, PA

Reputation Management

• Remove or untag pictures

• Ask friends to do the same

• Limit info on public profiles

• LinkedIn.com

• ClaimId.com/Naymz.com

• Blog

Reputation Management

• Get involved - generate good publicity

• Don’t get into online arguments (and if you do… drop it!)

• You may need professional help (technical… not the other kind)

Communication Methods

• Simultaneous use of cell phone, IM, blogs, land phones and web surfing

• Less f2f… seems less “healthy” but…

• True multi-tasking

• True tele-work

• Today’s teens are tomorrow’s work force… are you ready to compete?

Warning Signs

• Large amounts of time on-line, especially at night.

• Inappropriate material on their computer.

• Phone calls from strangers.

• Mail, gifts, or packages from strangers.

• Your child turns the computer monitor off or quickly changes the screen on the monitor when you come into the room.

Warning Signs

• Your child becomes withdrawn from the family.

• Your child is using an on-line account belonging to someone else.

• An empty Internet browser history.

• Finding inappropriate or encrypted files on the computer.

If You Suspect Problems

• Talk to your child!

• More invasive:– Browser history (if available)

– Monitoring software

Key Messages

• The Net is mostly good (Browsers don’t hurt people… People hurt people!)

• Everything old is new again – but the neighborhood got bigger

Key Messages

• Mom was right!– Don’t talk to strangers

– Don’t take candy or gifts from a stranger

– Don’t accept a ride or go anywhere with a stranger

• Get Educated

• Talk to your kids

Interesting show on PBS Frontline:“Growing Up Online”

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/kidsonline/Key Links• http://kids.getnetwise.org/ - tools you can use• http://www.us-cert.gov/cas/tips/index.html -

tips and info from the federal government• http://www.education.com/

Discussion?

Slides and handouts on InfoLink