Resources for use with teenagers
Cybersmart has a number of engaging resources for teenagers to explore cybersafety issues. This section includes discussion points for your teens to consider. Click on a topic below to explore the resources.
- Tagged - Digital reputation, cyberbullying and sexting
- Protecting personal information
- Cyberbullying
- Cyberstalking
- e-security
- Unwanted contact—online grooming
Tagged is a video resource which encourages young people to reflect on the real life consequences caused by cyberbullying, sexting, and a negative digital reputation.
Tagged is available free of charge to all families and schools. Order your copy of Tagged.
The resources in this section are intended to help teens understand the importance of protecting their personal information and identifying where they need to use caution with disclosing personal information.
Budd:e
The Budd:e e-Security Education Package is designed to raise the e-security awareness of Australian children and young people to help them stay smart online. Budd:e offers a learning module for secondary school students.
Guidance for your teen when using this resource:
- suggest that your teen log-in to the Secondary module and navigate to Toob/Privacy and view the privacy videos
- key points for your teen to consider include:
- the importance of considering who they share information with
- how to use the privacy settings on their social networking websites—these change from time to time so it can be good to check that the controls are blocking information from outsiders effectively
- using caution when entering details on websites, and for online purchasing etc. In particular, encourage teens to check website privacy policies and terms of use to see if the information will be shared/sold to others
- understand the importance of not posting phone numbers, addresses and other identifying information on profile/home pages or on walls that are publicly accessible—if they need to share this information with others, encourage them to use email or direct messages that can't be viewed by others.
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The resources in this section are intended to help teens understand the importance of reporting cyberbullying and standing up for others online.
Let's Fight It Together
Let's Fight It Together is a comprehensive teaching resource to help young people, teachers and parents understand cyberbullying and its impact on others.
Guidance for your teen when using this resource:
- suggest that your teen watches the video
- key points for your teen to consider include:
- consider who they would contact about cyberbullying if needed
- consider strategies that might help and not make matters worse
- clarify how you would be involved and the strategies you would both use. Agree on the point at which you would need to be involved.
Wise up to IT: Lauren's Ordeal
'Lauren's Ordeal explores a cyberbullying incident and the mis-use of a password to harass and bully others.
Guidance for your teen when using this resource:
- suggest that your teen watches the video
- key points for your teen to consider include:
- who they would go to if they need support
- consider strategies that might help and not make matters worse
- clarify how you would be involved and where your child is not comfortable for you to do so and agree on a point at which you would need to be involved
- consider methods of denying peers access to passwords without being ostracized and work out creative strategies such as ignoring or laughing off the request.
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The resource in this section is intended to help teens understand how to help avoid cyberstalking by restricting who sees personal information and how to manage cyberstalking if it occurs.
Wise up to IT: Stalking Sarah
Stalking Sarah explores the risks of cyberstalking and the importance of protecting personal information and being aware of who can access information that can be used to identify people.
Guidance for your teen when using this resource:
- suggest that your teen watches the video
- ask your teen to consider reviewing the privacy settings they use and the friends they accept on social networking and gaming sites.
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e-Security is the process of ensuring that electronic information is kept safe from corruption and malicious attack and that access to it is suitably and effectively controlled. The resources in this section are intended to help teens understand and manage basic risks to computers.
Wise up to IT: What The?
This short video explores the potential pitfalls of free downloads and not using reliable download sites. It stresses the importance of using updated anti-virus software and other e-security tools.
Guidance for your teen when using this resource:
- suggest that your teen watches the video
- key points for your teen to consider include:
- considering the activities that might expose them to online scams, such as posting information online, online shopping and entering competitions
- considering the family's e-security risks by completing the online safety audit and developing a list of actions for you
- consider a range of strategies for avoiding online scams and identity theft such as keeping up to date with scams through the Scamwatch website.
Budd:e for secondary students provides cybersafety resources for teens with a focus on privacy, copyright, discriminating between online sources and avoiding scams and e-security risks.
Guidance for your teen when using this resource:
- suggest that your teen log-in to the Secondary module and navigate to Toob videos
- consider how as a family you are protecting your information and computer network
- consider how they are using online commerce.
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The resources in this section are intended to help teens understand how to help identify and manage online grooming if it occurs.
Wise up to IT: Jeremy's Friend
Jeremy's Friend, explores online grooming and how disclosing too much personal information may be used for sexual solicitation or grooming.
Guidance for your teen when using this resource:
- suggest that your teen watches the video
- key points for your teen to consider include:
- considering how they protect their personal information including their full name, address, school or sport/recreational club names
- be on the look-out for the techniques used by adults seeking sexual contact with children such flattery, excessive interest, becoming friendly very quickly, recommending offline contact by phone or meeting and recommending parents not be informed
- the importance of never agreeing to meet somebody they only know online without your agreement and without you accompanying them
- ensuring that if they fo meet someone in real life, they should agree to take a trusted adult and meet in a public place such as a shopping centre.
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The Australian Government's
Easy Guide to Socialising Online provides information on how internet users can protect themselves and their information when using social networking sites, search engines and online games.