Teens, Social Media and Cyber Security Awareness

POSTED ON Oct 21, 2019

According to a new Pew Research Center survey, some 95% of teens have access to a smartphone, which represents a 22-percentage-point increase since the center’s previous study of the teen technology landscape in 2014-2015. Half of the girls who took part in the survey are nearly constant online users, compared with 39% of teenage boys (aged 13-17). And Hispanic teens are more likely than whites to report using the internet almost constantly (54% vs. 41%). Another 44% say they go online several times a day.

Social networking websites have hundreds of millions of registered users. But just like any kind of communication, using social media can involve some risk, says a government report published during National Cybersecurity Awareness Month.

Held every October, National Cybersecurity Awareness Month (NCSAM) is an effort between government and industry to raise awareness about the importance of cybersecurity and to ensure that all Americans have the resources they need to be safer and more secure online.

NCSAM 2019 stresses the importance of taking steps to enhance cybersecurity. This year’s message – Own IT. Secure IT. Protect IT. – focuses on key areas including citizen privacy, consumer devices, and e-commerce security.

So how can consumers minimize risks?

- Use two-factor authentication.
- Never click on a link embedded in a social media message or e-mail.
- Understand your IoT devices. Change to a strong password and only allow the device to operate on a network with a secured Wi-Fi router.
- Protect your Wi-Fi networks—set up firewalls, use complex passwords, and consider using access control to limit the devices able to access your network.
- Separate your computing devices from your Internet of Things (IoT) devices and spread them throughout several different networks. IoT devices include thermostats, smoke detectors, smart music systems, smart light bulbs, fitness trackers, smart body scales, and even baby monitors.
- Disable the Universal Plug and Play protocol (UPnP) on your router—UPnP can be exploited to access many IoT devices.
- Purchase devices from manufacturers with a track record of providing secure devices, and set your devices for automatic updates when available.