This Lil Piglet

Top Social Media Tips for Teens #ESETProtects Giveaway

Gone are the days of easy watchfulness over kids. With all the new technology and ease of access to online activity, it’s hard as a parent to keep on top of it all to ensure our kids stay safe. When I was younger I had to pick up the phone and use my words to carry on a conversation; with the only land-line phone hardwired front and centre in the entrance to the kitchen, it was hard to hide anything from my parents. Well played parents; well played. These days it’s become easier and easier for teens to disconnect, replacing real interaction with social media apps, emoticons and 140 characters, opening the door to online dangers 24-7. Last month I discussed parental security settings for overall computer usage and protecting your family online, this month I’m getting to the nitty gritty of how to keep your teens safer while using social media because let’s face it, tweens and teens will use social media.

 

My preteens and teen are always seeking out ways to interact with their peers well past school hours. Facebook and KIK have always been a sore spot; I often hear “But Mommmm, all of my friends use it.” Of course I retort with “If your friends jumped off a bridge…” and “I’m not ALL your friends mother…” and soon realize I hear my mother’s voice spewing out of my mouth. Rather than preach to deaf ears, I chose to educate my kids on the dangers of social media and help them ensure safety settings for their social media apps are set appropriately for maximum security.

 

How to Stay Safe in Social Media

 

  1. Don’t give too much away – Be careful how much you give away about yourself in your profile. The more you add, the more an identity thief can learn about you. No clues to your home address, mother’s maiden name, age or relatives should be given. You can add your phone number but this can be locked to friends only or even just yourself and Facebook, in case of suspicious activity.
  2. Keep your private stuff private – Control your privacy settings. Facebook privacy settings can be set so only certain friends can see your photo’s, status updates, timeline and activity. To prevent public access, you can go a step further and remove the tagging option so friends or family cannot tag your name or profile in photos or other Facebook activity that you may not want to be linked to. Keep in mind, a future boss for your teen may want to take a look through online profiles.
  3. A Facebook friend is not forever – Unless you are using Facebook for marketing purposes, think about the actual ‘friends” you really want to connect with. For example that guy who you kind of knew in the your first dorm room? The random woman you once met on holiday. Do you have any idea what they are doing now? Are they trustworthy? When was the last time you heard from them? You get the picture. A little pruning of the Friends list is a good idea every now and again. NEVER publicly announce holidays or other absences on Facebook; doing so could set you up for unwanted house guests in your absence.
  4. Set the controls on YouTube, Vine, Instagram and other Social Media Sharing Apps – Like Facebook, Google states that no-one under 13 should use the site. However the safest bet is to set up a child user account which will block any inappropriate content. You can also turn off comments to prevent your kids being abused or bullied by other users and stop them from doing the same.

ESET provides a free tool called Social Media Scanner that can scan your Facebook and Twitter to protect you and your friends’ timeline, messages and newsfeed from malicious objects.

Theft does not have to be the only reason you should protect your digital devices from anti-theft, far more commonly loss of device is the number one reason people regret not having this software installed.  Had they done so, loss of information, photos or files could have possibly been recovered. Here are a few tips that will help minimize the damage if it happens to you.

 

  1. Password-protect your computing devices.
  2. Always backup your files.
  3. Use tracking software to help get your stolen device back.
  4. Don’t tempt thieves with unattended mobile devices, particularly in public places. In a recent survey we found that 1 in 5 stolen devices were taken from a car, 12% from an airport, train, bus, or other public transportation, and 11% from a restaurant or coffee shop.
  5. Encrypt sensitive data.
  6. Bonus tip. Think about removing sensitive data from your device to store on the company network and access remotely over a secure connection. This way, if “bad things” happen, you’ll have much lower likelihood that the bad actors got off with critical information.
It’s hard enough to be a parent these days, trying to protect our kids from the dangers of the world without placing them in a bubble, coming across as preaching or refusing access to technology that kids feel is only fair.  ESET helps you educate your kids to be safer in their social media activity while giving you the proven back-end scanning protection so you can relax a little. Your Teen might even start believing you’re cool again. That’s a stretch.

 

Discount

 

ESET Smart Security received the well-known PTPA (Parent Tested Parent Approved) Seal of Approval, a highly regarded award seal in North America. To find out more head over to the ESET Facebook Page or follow them on Twitter.

For a limited time, receive 15% off the purchase of ESET Smart Security 6, the first step to online security for your family.

GIVEAWAY ALERT

Prizes:

5 Eset products (valued at $59.99 each)

1 x $100 Target Gift card

1 tablet preloaded with Eset software (Choice of Kindle Fire, Samsung Galaxy Tab or Google Nexus)
a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

46 comments on “Top Social Media Tips for Teens #ESETProtects Giveaway”

  1. As a very private person I take my online security very seriously.

  2. Online security is important to keep all family members safe while on the net

  3. Online security is important to me because I don’t want to deal with the hassles, costs, and stress of Identity Theft.

  4. It’s especially important when my 4 year old is using the computer. We really have to watch what he is clicking on. YouTube is the worst!

  5. I’m concerned about passwords being stolen.

  6. It is absolutely essential! There are just way to many people who are looking to take advantage of others/scam others via use of personal info available online. Not only do i like my privacy, but i also want to be assured that no one can access my personal data and use in a harmful manner.

  7. Online security is important. Don’t want the wrong people getting my info.

  8. There are so many untrustworthy people out there

  9. Online security is important to me because I work from home and keep all my business on my computer including the accounts for the business. I also do online banking for my business so security is very important. I’

  10. Online security is important to me because I work from home and keep all my business on my computer including the accounts for the business. I also do online banking for my business so security is very important.

  11. You don’t ever want anyone to get a hold of your personal data, and so much is on computers now that we have to do everything possible to keep it safe and to keep ourselves and our children safe.

  12. Online security is important to me as my life is ONline so much more these days compared to times in the past – lots of personal info out there!

  13. I have a daughter who just went into middle school and now needs more access to the internet for homework, etc. Plus of course wanting to stay in contact with her friends. I want to ensure her safety online. I regulate it as much as I can, but an online security system would give me more peace of mind.

  14. Online security is important to me because I have important things on my computer that I don’t want to lose.

  15. I’m very much concerned about passwords are being stolen.

  16. It is important to me so I can keep my identity safe.

  17. After getting a virus and no computer for a week, security is #1 for me. Can’t live without my computer. LOL

  18. Concerned about personal information getting stolen

  19. Online Security is so Important to me for many reasons: My Kids Safety, My Financial Safety, and overall security while surfing the Web.

  20. computer viruses and email hacks are very annoying!

  21. Online security is important to me in the world of cyber and online things we do everyday. Your whole life can be affected by online events so security is a ‘MUST’!

  22. online security is important to me because I always want to feel safe online!!

  23. I think it’s easy to forget our digital footprint and it is important to have online security to prevent identity theft!

  24. It’s important because I don’t want anyone to steal my identity

  25. I worry about my online presence and security. I want to protect my privacy. I saw a program about identity theft and there were personal stories that were complete horror stories.

  26. Online security is important to me because I’ve heard what happens to people when they get their identity stolen and the big hassle you go through,to fix it!

  27. It is important to me because there is a lot of personal information stored on my computer. Like most people, I do my banking etc online so I like to be sure that my information remains private and secure.

  28. I have 4 kids- security is SUPER important to protect them!

  29. It is important to me because there is a lot of personal information stored on my computer. Like most people, I do my banking and bill paying online so I like to be sure that my information remains private and secure.

  30. Online security is important to me because I have children to protect.

  31. It’s important to me because there are so many cases of identity theft nowadays and I want to keep myself protected

  32. Online security is important to me because I want to keep my personal info private

  33. There is so many people looking to take advantage of innocent people, by stealing identity, bank info, and spamming your computer. Security is soo important

  34. There are so many schiesty people in this world you always have to be careful!

  35. I don’t want my information and passwords stolen.

  36. i have younger children who are also fairly computer savvy. i try to watch carefully what they are doing online (main area computer space), but can’t see everything they click on. and i do a lot of other stuff on my computer so personal security and privacy is paramount to me.

  37. Personal information is always a concern

  38. Online security is important to me because so much of what we do makes is way online, from family photos o banking. It’s important to make sure I’m the only one who can access my personal information.

  39. my kids safety is the most important thing to me. anything we can do to support that is awesome

  40. Concerned about personal identity!

  41. VERY important to me because my laptop has caught a virus before and it’s never fun! I need a good security that will protect my computer!

  42. ESET is an AMAZING security program. I want to protect my info because no one should have it.

  43. Cannot say enough about how important this is for my 12, 14 and 17 year old. They don’t always take into consideration consequences to what they post! Doesn’t matter mom plays in that playground 🙂

  44. Online security is very important especially nowadays that almost all things are done online like bank transactions. You almost have all your personal data stored in your gadgets therefore its worth protecting.

  45. Online security is so important to me because my kids (ages 6 – 17) spend a lot of time online.

  46. I have 2 13 year olds and im constantly on them about social media. I recently aloud them to have a facebook but I constantly have to monitor it. So far, So good! Thanks for sharing this.. we can never be too safe! =)

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