You’ve probably learned a long list of important safety and privacy lessons already: Look both ways before crossing the street; buckle up; hide your diary where your nosy brother can’t find it; don’t talk to strangers.

The Federal Trade Commission, the nation’s consumer protection agency, is urging kids to add one more lesson to the list: Don’t post information about yourself online that you don’t want the whole world to know. The Internet is the world’s biggest information exchange: many more people could see your information than you intend, including your parents, your teachers, your employer, the police — and strangers, some of whom could be dangerous.

Check it out!

• Before you start playing, be sure your computer has an activated security suite: a firewall, anti-spyware software, and anti-virus software.

• Use a strong password for your gaming accounts. Be sure your password has at least eight characters and uses numbers, letters, and symbols.

• If another player is making you feel uncomfortable, tell a trusted adult. Remember that you can always kick a player out of the game if they are making you uncomfortable.

• Learn how to block and/or report another player if they are making you uncomfortable. Keep a record of what the other player said, but do not engage them.

• Never reveal your real name, location, gender, age, or any other personal information. Keep your user name vague.

• Use an avatar rather than an actual picture of yourself.

• Do not present yourself as dating material.

• Do not use a web-cam while playing an online game.

• Do not accept downloads from strangers. This includes cheat programs that may claim to help you perform better in a game, but really could be carrying malware.

• Do not send out materials to fellow gamers that contains personal information and/or data.

• Do not meet a stranger from your gaming world in person. People are not always who they say they are.

Visit StaySafeOnline.org for more tips!

The Internet is an amazing resource for parents. A world of parenting information is just a search engine away! But it’s easy to become lost and confused—there are just so many Web sites out there. How do you know if you can trust what you read? Anyone can publish anything on the World Wide Web. There’s no quality control. Many sites are pushing an agenda, and others are trying to sell a product. Some are just plain wrong.

UM linked what they consider to be the most trustworthy sites on the Web for information for parents.

Check out YourChild.

All music is not always appropriate for all ages. The music industry takes seriously its responsibility to help parents determine what is and is not appropriate for their children. That's why the record companies created the Parental Advisory Label Program. This program is a tool to help parents make the choice about when -- and whether -- their children should be able to listen to a particular recording. Music can be a tremendous tool in fostering dialogue and understanding across generations. Through music, parents or other adults can tune into what kids are thinking and feeling. We need to pay attention to the music children choose and ask questions: why do they like a certain song or album? What do they think the artist is saying? When these opportunities to talk openly are seized, parents, kids AND music are best served.

Mitch Bainwol, Chairman and CEO, Recording Industry Association of America

Click here for information on the Parental Advisory from the RIAA.

Remember that phrase from your own childhood? It’s still a valid question, but now, it comes with a twist:

“Do you know where your kids are — and who they’re chatting with online?”

Social networking sites have morphed into a mainstream medium for teens and adults. These sites encourage and enable people to exchange information about themselves, share pictures and videos, and use blogs and private messaging to communicate with friends, others who share interests, and sometimes even the world-at-large. And that’s why it’s important to be aware of the possible pitfalls that come with networking online.

Read the guide here.

Tracking and profiling kids online — and selling their information to advertisers and data brokers — has quickly become widespread. The Wall Street Journal recently found that the top 50 websites for kids and teens installed 4,123 cookies and other tracking tools on a test computer — 30% more than were installed by the top 50 general sites.

It’s time to take action to protect kids’ privacy.

We need a “Do Not Track Kids” law. Policymakers must take action to protect kids’ and teens’ online privacy. Kids’ online behavior shouldn’t be tracked, and companies shouldn’t be allowed to sell or transfer kids’ personal information.

Learn more.

Children present unique security risks when they use a computer — not only do you have to keep them safe, but you have to protect their data on your computer. By taking some simple steps, you can dramatically reduce the threats.

• 

  Keep your computer in a central and open location in your home and be aware of other computers your child may be using.  Discuss and set guidelines/rules for use with your children. Post these rules by the computer as a reminder.

• Use the Internet with your children. Familiarize yourself with your children's online activities and maintain a dialogue with your child about what applications they are using.

• Implement parental control tools that are provided by some ISPs and available for purchase as separate software packages. Remember - No program is a substitute for parental supervision. Also, you may be able to set some parental controls within your browser. Internet Explorer allows you to restrict or allow certain web sites to be viewed on your computer, and you can protect these settings with a password. To find those options, click Tools on your menu bar, select Internet Options, choose the Content tab, and click the Enable button under Content Advisor.

• Consider software that allows you to monitor your children's email and web traffic.

• Consider partitioning your computer into separate accounts - Most operating systems (including Windows XP, Mac OS X, and Linux) give you the option of creating a different user account for each user. If you're worried that your child may accidentally access, modify, and/or delete your files, you can give him/her a separate account and decrease the amount of access and number of privileges he/she has.

• Know who your children's online friends are and supervise their chat areas.

• Teach your children never to give out personal information to people they meet online such as in chat rooms or bulletin boards.

• Know who to contact if you believe your child is in danger. Visit www.getnetwise.org for detailed information. If you know of a child in immediate risk or danger, call law enforcement immediately. Please report instances of online child exploitation to the National Center For Missing and Exploited Children's Cyber Tipline. Even though children may have better technical skills, don't be intimidated by their knowledge. Children still need advice, guidance, and protection. Keep the lines of communication open and let your child know that you can be approached with any questions they may have about behaviors or problems encountered on the computer.

Thanks to StaySafeOnline.org for these tips!

Michigan Cyber Safety Initiative

• Kindergarten - 2nd Grade
  • AG Schuette K-5 Intro
  • Details, Details...
  • You're Not Alone
• 3rd - 5th Grade
  • AG Schuette K-5 Intro
  • Predator
  • Predator Victim Grooming
  • I Know Where You Are
  • Terrible Text
  • Let's Fight It Together
• 6th - 8th Grade
  • AG Schuette 6-8 Intro
  • Where Are You?
  • Amy's Choice
  • Predator Victim Grooming
  • Survivor Diaries
  • I Know Where You Are
  • Message Sent
  • Cyberbullying
  • Let's Fight It Together
• Community Seminar
  • AG Schuette Community Seminar Intro
  • Predator Victim Grooming
  • Social Networking
  • Dr. Michael Rich
  • Justin Berry
  • Marian Merritt
  • AG Schuette Community Seminar Closing

AT&T Videos

• It's Not Easy to Delete Things off the Internet
• Be careful what you post about yourself online
• Don't text and drive
• Some Colleges and Universities Look at Your Online Profiles
• Choose Your Email Address Wisely
• Be careful about who you add as a friend on social networks
• Learn About Privacy Settings on Your Favorite Social Networks

Professor Patrick Corbett of Cooley Law School explains how the law deals with Internet crimes. You can access the series directly on his website, or watch the embedded videos below.

These materials should be very useful when teaching cybersecurity to your students.

• http://www.netsmartz.org/kit/ - Visit the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's education kit to bring awareness to your students.
• Michigan Cyber Safety Initiative Teacher Materials
• C-SAVE Curriculum (National Cyber Security Alliance)
  • Grades K-2
  • Grades 3-5
  • Middle and High School

• New York Times Lesson Plans
  • Resources on Cyber Bullying
    • Does Free Speech Exist in School?
    • Fight for Your Rights
    • The Rules of the Game
  • Addressing Bullying
    • What Can Be Done to Stop Bullying?
    • Responding in Kind
    • Practical Jokes
    • Cyberspies in Cyberspace
    • No Place for Bullies
    • Hall Monitors
    • Ethics
    • Many Reasons Why
  • Personal Digital Habits
    
    • Policy, Privacy, and Protection
    • Cellphones in School
    • Every Waking Minute? Examining Personal Media Habits
    • How Much Time Do You Spend ‘Consuming Media’ Every Day?
    • How Has the ‘Digital Fishbowl’ Complicated Your Love Life?
    • Question: Go Cold Turkey?

• http://stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov/kids/ - Site for kids and adults from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
• http://www.education.com/topic/school-bullying-teasing/ - Dozens of resources for addressing bullying in school and online.
• http://www.ncpc.org/topics/bullying - Information for educators and parents.
• http://www.tolerance.org/search/apachesolr_search/bullying - Guidelines and tips for teachers and students.