Safe Online

Bloom Graduation January 2024

In January we celebrated the graduation of sixty-eight learners from our two Bloom Digital Skills Centers. We are so grateful to our partner Family Development Services and to all those who have made the continuation of the program possible! When we teach digital literacy skills, we do so with the desire to create opportunities for our learners; at the same time, we wish to create deep awareness of potential threats to security and safety. Embedded in our Digital Literacy eLearning Pathway is a module solely focused on online safety. We asked some of the students to write down what they remembered from this module. Here is what one 16 year old student shared*:

Online safety

The internet is a wonderful place full of information, entertainment, opportunities, and connections. It will be a part of your life almost no matter what you do. We want you to have the best it has to offer and for that reason there are things we want you to be aware of so you can be safe online. 

The internet is like a busy road. 

Games, video games, cartoons, and emails travel over the internet as data. It is very important to stay safe.

The internet is fun and easy to use: you can learn new things, play games, watch cartoons, and make friends.

Remember always to keep your email password a secret from everyone. No one should see your password. Avoid saving your password on any computer or mobile phone. 

Email is great to keep in touch. But remember to log out or shut down every time so that others cannot access your email. 

It is also important to know that you should be careful of any links or ads in your email and on the internet. Don’t click on them unless you are sure they are safe. It is best to know their source. 

If you don’t have your own computer you can access the internet at a cyber café, but here it is best not to click on ads and links. 

You may also be using social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat to chat with friends. Make sure you always know the person you are communicating with. Never share your personal details with strangers - your name, age, school name, or home location. Also, never send a picture of yourself to someone you chat with on the computer without your parent’s permission. Never write to someone who has made you feel uncomfortable or scared.

Do not give your personal details when downloading games. Avoid using free Wi-Fi in shopping malls, railway stations, metro, bus stations, or other public spaces.

Safe passwords  

A strong password should be at least 12 characters long, but 14 or more is better. Use a combination of uppercase letter, lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. Make it easy for you to remember but difficult for others to guess. If you create a password, keep it safe. Don’t share a password with anyone, not even friends or family members. Never send a password by email, message, or any other means of communication that is not reliably secure. If you don’t want to memorize multiple passwords, use a password manager. It’s ok to write your password down as long as you keep it secure. 

Try to…

1. Help someone solve a personal problem

2. Comment kindly

3. Share uplifting stories

4. Help others 

5. Inspire 

6. Compliment someone

7. Create solutions

*copyedited by Basis