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Cyberbullying - A Best Practice Guide for Schools
Children are becoming increasingly sophisticated in their use of the Internet, and according to children's charity NCH, at least one in five children has experienced some form of digital bullying. As the dangers associated with the Internet continue to evolve and develop - schools and parents are increasingly struggling to keep surfing safe. Fortunately, thanks to the efforts of anti-bullying groups, government agencies and service providers, a comprehensive range of guidance and resources on cyberbullying is now available. But unless password protection is suitably stepped up in schools, the digital bullies will continue to escape detection. Clever cyberbullies understand how the technology works. They know that they leave digital signatures and that mobile phones and hotmail account access can be traced in seconds. They guard their anonymity by using phones, email and IM accounts belonging to others. Sometimes the owners are coerced into it - but often they are simply innocent victims of password theft. In this sense, conventional password wisdom is completely wrong for schools. Passwords don't need to be protected from automated 'dictionary' or 'brute force' attacks (where an automated algorithm is used to guess passwords in multiple attempts), but from other students. To help ICT teachers improve security without disrupting lessons, SmoothWall has produced a password advice sheet that is specifically designed for schools. Challenging the suitability of conventional password wisdom, this guidance advocates the use of short yet memorable passwords and even suggests that it is unnecessary for children to change their login details regularly. Tom Newton explains; "Whereas a professional phisher might spend months secretly exploiting a compromised password of a CEO, students are much more prone to instantly obvious attacks - like changing profiles on bebo/facebook. Asking them to change their passwords every second moon is pointless and just adds to the problem." IT managers have an individual responsibility - not only to protect the security and confidentiality of the school, but to educate students so they can better protect themselves online and practice proper Internet etiquette. For more advice see; Password Advice for Schools and Beating the Cyberbullies - A Best Practice Guide. Our password generator is also a useful resource. *Please note: Although primarily produced for the benefit of UK schools, much of the advice these documents contain is relevant worldwide. |
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Beating the Cyberbullies