Word of Advice

7 April 2008

Stay safe socialising online

Facebook, Bebo, Friendster, MySpace … many people now use one, or more, of these social networking websites. Even if you haven’t got hooked into one of these sites yet, your kids probably have.

Online social networking websites allow people to connect with their friends, co-workers and family around the world and share photographs, play games and send messages to each another. You have your own page on the website, your ‘profile page’, which you manage and add information and photos. Your friends add comments to your page and you link to theirs.

Sounds like a great way of keeping in touch with people - which it is. But recent reports have said that these social networking sites could also bring with them some problems, including identity theft. While your basic details have been available online for some time – like in the online phone book - what makes social networking websites different is the level of information people provide about themselves.

Some social networkers post detailed, personal information about themselves on their profile, from their date and place of birth, to their address – which is the sort of information that banks may ask as security questions. Users also list their favourite films, their mobile phone number, previous employers, favourite sports teams, as well as family, work and school history.

Private or public profile?

All the social networking sites allow you to set your profile page to ‘private’. This means that only you, and the people you allow, can view it. It’s not available for public view. Even if you have this setting activated, remember the information you type on your friends’ pages could also put you at risk.

For example, even though you may restrict access to your page, say you leave a seemingly innocent comment on a friend’s (public) page saying “Hi, haven’t seen you in ages, I’m going on holiday for a fortnight but we’ll catch up when I’m back at home.” Imagine how useful this information would be to a burglar.

Of course, for some people the point of social networking sites is to not only have your real-life friends in the virtual world, but also to meet new people who share the same interests and hobbies as you. If you’re one of these sociable types, be extra wary of the information you provide in your profile or your day to day activities. You don’t want to supply would-be criminals with information which may aid their illicit activities.

Protect yourself

There’s no reason to stop using these social networking sites but if you want to continue to use and enjoy your online networking you should consider the information you put on your profile:

• remember that you can set your privacy settings so only your real-life friends can see your full profile
• be careful what you write on other people’s (public) pages and remember that any information you put up could be copied and pasted – don’t post anything you wouldn’t be happy for everyone to see
• be careful about accepting friend requests from people you don’t know or trust
• be wary of the information you post. Don’t list your full date and place of birth, or other information that could be used for passwords/PIN numbers etc.
• step back and think about the information you’re posting. Put yourself in the shoes of an identity thief, would they find the information useful?
• remember, posting pictures of a big night out may seem innocent enough, but what if those pictures come back to haunt you? Increasingly, employers are checking out job applicants’ online profiles.

NetSafe

New Zealand's Internet Safety Group, NetSafe, offers cybersafety education for all New Zealanders - children, adults, parents, early childhood services, schools, community organisations and businesses.

NetSafe also runs a contact centre on free-phone 0508 NETSAFE (0508 638 723). The NetSafe Contact Centre operates Monday to Friday 8.00am - 6pm and receives calls about cybersafety and security issues including text bullying, online harassment (including identity theft), spam, stalking, scams, hacking, and much more.

More information is also available on their website about staying safe and protecting yourself or by email.