Facebook in the News

A couple of interesting Facebook stories have been published in the news recently having to do with security of information. The first story has to do with cybersecurity and phishing attacks. Facebook has been plagued with these attacks over the past few weeks in which hackers are trying to acquire the login password information of Facebook users. The way that it works is that the hackers will send out a malicious link to the friends of already compromised Facebook accounts. When the user clicks on the link, it takes them to what looks exactly like the Facebook login page. Instead, it is a fake page that will send their username and password information to the criminals. The criminals can then access the user's Facebook account to send out more malicious links or other spam. One other result that can be disastrous for the user whose password information is stolen is if they use that same password for other site accounts as well, such as financial accounts. Criminal hackers know that it can be common practice for people to use the same username and password for multiple online accounts. Facebook has said they are cleaning up the problem, removing the phishing messages and resetting the passwords of compromised accounts. Some strategies to avoid this problem are:

• Do not click on links that you are not sure are legitimate.
  
• Check with the person who sent you the link to make sure they are the ones who sent you the link.
  
• If the click on the link and it immediately takes you to a login page, it may be a phishing scam.
  
• Do not keep the same password for all of your online accounts, especially accounts having to do with finances. I know it can be very difficult to keep track of multiple username and passwords, but keeping them seperate will help you avoid a much larger problem if one of them is ever stolen.
  
• Periodically changing you passwords can also help to minimize damage if your data is ever stolen.

The other story in the news was sent to me by Felicia Vargas and is about college admissions officers scanning Facebook profiles before making final decisions on applicants. In a survey released by the National Association for College Admissions Counseling about 25% of colleges and universities said their admissions officers research prospective students' social-networking profiles before extending admission or scholarships. There was no data on how many of those said that their final decision was influenced because of social networking profiles. It has been known for a while that school admissions and employers may Google an applicants name, search YouTube, Facebook, MySpace or other social networking sites looking for information about that person beyond what they see on in application or in an interview. It is important that students know about their "digital footprint" and what they are leaving behind about themselves online. Check out blog article we posted last November with some of this same information and some links to safe social networking.

H1N1 Virus Attention Attracts Scammers and Phishers

It seems that whenever there is a high impact news story that captivates the world, there are always criminals in the background waiting to prey on people's fears. So, with all the attention being given to the H1N1 Virus (Swine Flu), you also need to be wary of spam email and phishing attacks. There have been numerous reports of scammers sending out emails with titles about the Swine Flu. These emails can contain links or files that infect the user's computer with malware that will either damage the computer or steal personal data that is stored on the computer. Some emails that are being sent out claim to sell vaccines and exotic cures for the Swine Flu. While some scams are easy to spot, others are more difficult for people to pick up on including this example:

Another attack, reported by researchers at Symantec (NSDQ:SYMC), informed recipients of the swine flu disaster by incorporating a linked news headline from reputable news agencies. Users are asked whether they are in the U.S. or Mexico and whether or not they know anybody who is affected by the outbreak. Victims are then requested to share their experiences by filling in Web application forms or replying back with their e-mails and phone numbers. However, the online questionnaire is a way for scammers to steal identifying information from unsuspecting victims.

security experts recommend that users go directly to trusted news sources for information on the swine flu virus and avoid opening unsolicited e-mail messages and links.

You need to be careful about what information you are submitting about yourself online. Cnet.com recently published a very informative article titled, "FAQ: Demistifying ID Fraud" about identity fraud which answers these important questions:

• How does the data get stolen from my computer?
• If I don't use my credit or debit card on the Internet, how does the data get stolen?
• What do the criminals do with the data when they get it?

This is a very informative article and also includes some links of sites to go to if you think you are a victim.

Consequences for Sexting

Three Students in Billerica, who were involved in a recent sexting case, will not face child pornography charges, according to an article in the Boston Herald. Instead of being criminally charged in the incident, the one 13 year old student and two 14 year old students will be required to attend cybersafety classes and will have the use of their cell phones restricted over the next 6 months. The boys who forwarded the photo will also perform 50 hours of community service. The students could have faced much more serious child pornography charges under Massachusetts state law.

More and more states are considering passing laws that specifically deal with sexting. A recent article in eSchool News gives examples of what some states are proposing. Vermont has a bill pending in the House that would create an exemption from prosecution for child pornography for 13- to 18-year-olds on either the sending or receiving end of sexting messages, so long as the sender voluntarily transmits an image of himself or herself. Ohio is another state that is working on legislation that would allow for teens caught sexting not to have to register as sex offenders. It is important for kids to understand, however, that even if these laws are put into place, that there are still consequences to their actions. Some of these states are taking away cell phone and internet use from offenders, as well as making them attend sexual harassment classes.

Most experts agree that teens need to be educated about the risks of sexting. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children have a resource online called Think Before You Post which offers advice on sharing and posting personal information online.

Felicia Vargas and I recently presented to four classes of Middle School students at the McCormick Middle School as a part of their Health and Wellness Day. The main part of the presentation was about cyberbullying, but the organizers of the event asked us to add some information about sexting. So we dedicated the last 15 minutes of the presentation to discussing sexting and its consequences with the students. Most students knew what sexting is, and most admitted that they knew of someone who had sent or received a nude photo of someone on their phone. What a lot of them seemed surprised about were the legal consequences of sexting. We told them that they could get into serious trouble if they participate in this action, including being charged with distribution of child pornography. We also tried to explain that there are also serious emotional consequences to sexting. Unfortunately, a lot of times, the person who takes the photo of themselves doesn't think that it is going to be forwarded on to other people. Children need to understand that once they send a photo out by text, or post it online, that photo can then be passed along to hundreds, thousands, or even millions of other people. We asked students to remember these three important things:

1. Be Smart: Think before you send any pictures out, understand that usually nothing you post is private in cyberspace.
2. Be Strong: Don't give into pressure to do something you are not comfortable with, like sending a nude photo. Don't let your friends give into any pressure.
3. Be Responsible: Don't ask someone to send a nude photo to you and don't forward nude photos to other people if you receive one.
   

Good Morning America Story on Sexting

This Morning, Good Morning America aired a town hall style meeting with teens and parents about Sexting. The piece features Perry Aftab of Wired Safety giving parents a few tips on how to check and see if your child has posted anything inappropriate online. It also features a teenage girl and her mother who share how she sent a nude photograph of herself to her boyfriend, who then forwarded the picture on to other people after they broke up. Here is the link to the video:

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=7337547&page=1

Talk to your students and parents about Sexting. Let them know that Boston School Police and the Boston Police Department could prosecute students for breaking Massachusetts State child pornography laws including Chapter 272 Sections 28, 29, 29A, 29B, 29C. In summary, those laws basically say that you cannot distribute matter that is deemed harmful to minors, disseminate or possess obscene matter, or have anyone under the age of 18 pose for a picture in the state of nudity or engaged in sexual conduct. It is against the law for a picture to be taken and it is against the law for a person to forward that picture if they receive it.

Students that engage in this type of behavior could end up suffering serious consequences including arrest for a felony and registering as a sex offendor. Students who have taken nude photos of themselves and had them forwarded to unintended recipients have suffered severe emotional and psychological damage.

Another Sexting Story

Another day, another story about teenage sexting. Leroy Wong, A colleague of mine sent a link to this story from CNN. It is another case in which a teen is convicted of a crime after he sent out a nude photo of his ex-girlfriend via cell phone to friends. As is the case in many of these incidents, his girlfriend willingly sent him the photo of herself. Angry, after an argument, the teen decided to send the picture of her out to other people. As a result, he pleaded no contest to a felony charge of sending child pornography. He is now a registered sex offender in the state of Florida until he is 43 years old. He can't leave the country without making special plans with his probation officer and he has trouble finding a job because he is a convicted felon.

There are more and more cases like this popping up all over the country and it has set off a debate on whether or not teenagers should be punished so severely for sexting. There are those who consider it child pornography and that the offenders should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Then there are those who think that it is just teen indiscretion, child pornography laws were not made to be enforced in these types of cases.

One of the more interesting things that came out of this article is about a survey done by CosmoGirl.com and National Campaign to Prevent Teen & Unplanned Pregnancy. They surveyed about 1300 teens and young adults from ages 13-26 years old about sexting. Any of the findings they labeled as "teens" were from the group of 13-19 year olds. The results are very interesting including:

• 20% of the teens surveyed have sent nude or semi-nude photos of themselves
• 39% of the teens surveyed have sent sexually explicit messages
• 75% of the teens surveyed say sending sexually suggestive content "can have serious negative consequences"

So, 3 out of 4 kids surveyed know that there are negative consequences associated with sexting, but some of them are doing it anyway. In fact 44% of the teens say it is common for these pictures and messages to be shared with other people than the intended recipient. So the question is why do they do it? Here are the answers according to the survey:

Among teens who have sent sexually suggestive content:

• 66% of teen girls and 60% of teen boys say they did
  so to be “fun or flirtatious”— their most common
  reason for sending sexy content.
• 52% of teen girls did so as a “sexy present” for their
  boyfriend.
• 44% of both teen girls and teen boys say they sent
  sexually suggestive messages or images in response
  to such content they received.
• 40% of teen girls said they sent sexually suggestive
  messages or images as “a joke.”
• 34% of teen girls say they sent/posted sexually suggestive
  content to “feel sexy.”
• 12% of teen girls felt “pressured” to send sexually
  suggestive messages or images.

Along with this very insightful survey, the National Campaign to Prevent Teen & Unplanned Pregnancy website gives tips to parents on how to talk to their children about sexting. They also have a great tip sheet for teens as well, one that should be shared with all texting teens.

60 Minutes Report on Cyber Security

60 Minutes ran a story last night about computer viruses and the notorious Conficker worm that has been spreading to networks across the world.


Watch CBS Videos Online

Cyber Safety Mentors from the Greater Eggleston High School

Two weeks ago, the BPS Cybersafety Team was asked to present to the Greater Eggleston High School students as a part of their Health and Wellness Day at the school. The school lined up organizations to present on various issues of health and asked us to talk with their students about cyberbullying. So the team put together an hour long presentation for high school students about the different types of cyberbullying and strategies to avoid it. After the presentation, the students were encouraged to comment, ask questions, discuss what they just learned. The biggest response came when Felicia Vargas asked the group of students who would be interested in becoming a cybersafety mentor. The Greater Eggleston has a community service component in their curriculum and a lot of students expressed interest in becoming internet safety certified and teaching elementary school students about cybersafety strategies.

So this morning, three of those students came up to the offices of OIIT to become internet safety certified. They watched the videos from the iSAFE cybermentor certification program and we discussed the most important cybersafety strategies to teach elementary school students. Here were some of their ideas:

The students were quick to point out that the strategies to deal with cyberpredators were common sense things that a lot of teenagers already know, however, it is important for middle and elementary school students to understand that people sometimes misrepresent themselves online and try to take advantage of you.

On the topic of cyberbullying, the Eggleston mentors felt that it was important that students understand the consequences of their actions if they decide to be bullies. The consequences they have on their victims as well as the consequences they may face in school. They would also like to teach the students who are victims of cyberbullying to tell someone what is happening to them. They feel it is important that kids have someone who they trust to talk to and tell them if people are bullying them.

On the topic of Cybersecurity, the mentors felt that younger students need to learn how to be proactive when it comes to keeping their computers free of malware, instead of being reactive. One student said that she thinks most people don't learn about things like viruses and worms until they already have one on their computer and have to get it fixed. The solution they have is to teach students three important points about cybersecurity. First, they need to learn about what viruses, trojan horses and other malware are. Second, they need to understand how these things can affect their computers and third, they need to learn how to prevent malware from getting on their computers.

There were a lot more points that the cybermentors discussed this morning. They understood that their role in teaching internet safety strategies to elementary aged students is a very important one and all of them said that they felt that they were up to the challenge. They really want to bring their own experiences and real life examples into the classroom with them when they go out and teach those students. The next steps for them will be to go through some presentation skills training and practice what activities and lessons they will be using to teach students about staying safe online.