Schools out for the summer, which means your children might be tempted to spend more time with their screens than they do during the busy school year when they’re likely more tied up with school work and extracurricular activities.
Identity thieves love to target the younger generation because not only do they have a clean credit record, but also because there’s also less chance of the theft being discovered since teens are also less likely to be monitoring their credit.
Here are six bad habits that could put tweens and teens at risk of identity theft:
- Sharing devices: Sharing is not caring when it comes to some things. Teens might not think twice about sharing portable storage devices and USB thumb drives but this could result in exposure to malware that could then infiltrate whatever computer it is plugged into. Similarly, sharing smartphones and tablets is not a good idea.
- Using public WiFi without considering the consequence: Maybe your tween or teen has gotten in trouble for going over their allotted data usage for the month, which means they might be tempted to use whatever open, public WiFi they can access. Data transmitted over unsecured WiFi can be intercepted by third parties. Think about Internet banking, email and other services where you enter login information.
- Downloading apps from the Internet without reviewing their information sharing policies or making sure they’re safe: First, tweens and teens might not realize they should never download an app outside of the Google Play store. This Wired.com story reveals why, detailing a strain of malware that could steal user data and infected 1.3 million Android phones. “For criminals, the malicious Android app business is booming. It’s easy for a hacker to dress software up to look novel, benign, or like the dopplegänger of a mainstream product, and then plant it in third-party app stores for careless browsers to find. Once downloaded, these apps may even seem normal (if a little janky) but they can spread ransomware or types of malware that exploit system vulnerabilities to steal data or take over a whole device,” according to the story.
- Oversharing private information online: Adults and tweens/teens alike should take note: Taking part in every social media quiz they can get their hands on without thinking about the consequences is risky behavior. As our recent blog post points out here, participating in interactive Facebook memes and quizzes could actually put your identity at risk by getting people to share information about themselves that could contain answers to popular security questions. Even worse, many quizzes allow companies to mine and store all of your personal data, which they could then sell to third parties. It was spelled out in that privacy policy your child agreed to without a second thought.
- Password sharing: According to a Family Online Safety Institute study conducted by Hart Research Associates, over a third of teens (34 percent) admitted to sharing at least one username and password with someone other than their parents. Password sharing is a risky behavior that can compromise sensitive information.
- Using the same password for multiple sites: Just like many adults, teenagers might be tempted to use the same passwords across multiple sites, like email, for internet banking and on their social media accounts or game accounts. If that password is then stolen in a data breach, the rest of the accounts are at risk of being compromised.
While parents might feel a bit helpless about how to keep their children safe while online, there are some specific steps you can take that could certainly help protect them. Read about five steps you can take to protect your child’s identity here.
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