Hi there - great news!
I've just received
an email and it turns out I'm a millionaire!!!
According to this email,
I've won the lottery:
I'm rich, rich beyond my wildest dreams!
All I have to do
is send them my bank details
and they will put the money
in my account.
Now, what shall
I spend my millions on?
The funny thing is,
I don't even play the lottery!
Oh, wait a minute…
Did you see the mistake
I made there?
I nearly gave my bank details
to a stranger online.
I could have lost
all my money!
It just shows how important it is
to be careful online
both in your personal life
and as a distance learner.
So that's what we are going
to look at today:
safety & security.
As a distance learner,
you will be using
digital resources and platforms
as part of your studies.
That means you need
to be safe and secure.
So what does it mean
to be safe and secure digitally?
Well, it can include:
Making sure your digital accounts
are secured with strong passwords.
Keeping your personal details secret
so people online
don't know everything about you.
And being aware
of hoaxes, scams and tricks
so you don't fall
for the same kind of trick
that I nearly did.
There are many reasons
why we need to be safe
and secure when
we are in the digital world.
As a distance learner,
you need to be careful
not to reveal personal information about yourself
or anyone else online.
You don't want
the whole world
to have your phone number, right?
Remember, your university's digital platforms
are often more public
than private so data
protection rules apply.
Data protection means:
'the laws that relate to control over, access
to, and use of data stored in computers'.
And it's not just
on your university's platforms
that you need to be secure.
Just imagine if
dishonest people got access to your emails,
bank account or credit card details!
You could lose
a lot of money like that.
Or if someone found out
your personal details,
they could pretend to be you
and cause a lot of loss
or damage to you.
And nobody likes
to feel like a fool if they get tricked…
I feel properly silly
for believing
that fake lottery email –
what an idiot!
The good news is
there are lots of practical steps
to take to be safe online.
Think about
all your digital accounts
- email, social media,
banking, work, study.
Now ask yourself,
"How strong is my password?"
Be honest.
Is it your name, your birthday,
your pet's name?
Hmm: they could be quite weak.
You might want
to think about changing
them to something stronger.
Mixing numbers,
upper and lower-case characters,
and special symbols
is a good idea.
If you want to be really secure,
use random numbers and letters.
Now nobody would
give their cat a name like that!
You could even use a short sentence,
like this.
Personal details:
only put your personal details
into websites that you trust
and that are secure.
Secure websites will begin
with h-t-t-p-s.
And some sites
may provide a padlock in the
address bar.
Always check the website address
is spelt correctly:
many fake websites change
the address slightly,
so you don't notice
it's not the real website.
Be aware of scams and phishing.
These are often emails
from people you have never
heard of or websites
that ask you for
personal or financial details.
They may seem to offer
something fantastic
that you can claim for free.
If something sounds too good to be true
- then it probably is.
And don't forget about
the risks of ransomware.
Ransomware means
software the takes control of your computer
and you have to pay criminals to get back
control.
And who would trust
a criminal hacker to keep their word!
The good news is there are lots of tools
to help keep you safe.
Up to date anti-virus software
is a must,
and so is keeping
your operating system updated.
You can use password
manager programs to generate
strong passwords
and remember them for you.
But most importantly,
use your own common sense:
always remember that
you need to stay safe digitally.
Hey, look at that! I've won
a brand new laptop
worth thousands of pounds!!
Wa- wait a minute!