In general the internet is a safe place were everyone can interact with their friends, engage with content, and most importantly, binge watch your favourite shows. But the internet isn't always full of the good stuff. There are lots of risks involved with putting yourself out there online.
So, we had a chat with our young people about how you can keep yourself safe online and they came up with these top tips.
Free up a couple of minutes and give these a read!
1.) Don’t engage with strangers online. If you don’t know someone, then don’t add them or talk to them - just block, delete and report.
2.) Consider making your accounts private. That way you can control what you’re putting out there and who gets to see it.
3.) Don’t meet up in person with strangers who you meet online. Just because someone says that they are someone, it doesn’t mean that they actually are who they say are. We’ve all seen Catfish!
4.) Don’t give people your personal information online, especially if you don’t know them.
5.) Be conscious of what people can see in your photos. It’s dangerous to post a picture of yourself in your school uniform as it allows everyone to know your exact location at those times of the day.
6.) Don’t send inappropriate videos or images to anyone, even if you know them. You never know what will happen to those pictures once you’ve sent them.
7.) Don’t start arguments online, it could be interpreted as cyberbullying and lead to something worse.
8.) Don’t let everyone see your location. As fun as it is too see what your friends are getting up to on snap maps, you don’t know who is monitoring your location. It’s a scary thought that people can know exactly where you are all the time.
9.) Think about everything that you post. If you wouldn’t want your mam to see it, then don’t share it.
10.) Be resilient. People will always have negative things to say, but that shouldn’t stop you from posting things that matter to you. Always remember to report abuse.
11.) Most importantly, talk to someone about things happening online that worry you, especially if you are scared about something.
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