Cybersecurity in Education: What Parents, Teachers, and Students Should Know in 2023

Cybersecurity in Education: What Parents, Teachers, and Students Should Know in 2023

In as much as we have to thank technology for the help it has impacted in education, there are still some disadvantages the digital world has to offer. As technology grows in the world, cyberbullying has also become a thing in the digital world. Even in education, a cyberbully can still be found, lurking in the shadows. Parents, students, and teachers should be on the lookout for it and know how to tackle something like this. This is where cybersecurity in education comes in. According to Jeh Johnson, cybersecurity is a shared responsibility, and it boils down to this: in cybersecurity, the more systems we secure, the more secure we are. Cybersecurity is not a one-person work.

Education is the most hit sector when it comes to cyber-attacks: cyber criminals want to steal sensitive information about the school, defraud the school, steal a student’s data, and bully the person through cyber ways. The list goes on and on.

This article covers what you need to know about cybersecurity for students, cybersecurity in school, and cyber safety for students. It goes further to show the different roles parents, teachers and students have to play when it comes to cybersecurity in schools.

WHAT STUDENTS NEED TO KNOW

Students can be attacked through cyber means in a mission to opt information about them, using it for devious means. Students can avoid these kinds of attacks by the following means:

Installing anti-virus: Viruses like Trojan Horse, Adware, Ransomware, and Tina are ways where hackers can duplicate once information when the virus gets to the person's private information. This can lead to identity theft, cyberbullying, and others. Viruses are hard to prevent because they can come in through different means and forms, and the only way you can clear these viruses is by downloading an anti-virus.
An anti-virus is software that detects and destroys viruses and any other malware your laptop probably caught. With this antidote to the virus successfully installed in your device, your data and device are protected from hackers. Not only to install the virus, but your device also needs to be scanned by the anti-virus periodically to make sure no virus is lurking behind a document or software.
Never forget to log out of devices that are not personal: You have probably heard this time without a number never to forget to log out after using a public device like the ones in libraries, cyber cafes, and other public places, but it’s something you have to heed. Those devices are public, and you would not know who the next person using the device might be. It might be a hacker snooping into people’s businesses. You will never know; that is the reason you should not forget to log out of those devices when you’re through.
Even while logging into a friend’s phone, you should pull out your details when you’re done because you don’t know what will happen next. It is better safe than sorry.
Build strong passwords: Many students pick simple passwords they can remember so they can log in at any time. They end up picking their birthday as passwords, which can be pretty easy to guess. Passwords should be mixed with characters and numbers, something that can’t be guessed. The good thing about the internet is your password can always be saved in your Google passwords, so you don’t have to guess at all times.

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WHAT TEACHERS NEED TO DO

Teachers also need to be equipped with the knowledge of cybersecurity in education and cyber safety for their students. They need this information to protect their students' documents and the school’s own, thereby they should have an awareness of cybersecurity in schools.

Creation of two-step authentication: Creating a two-step authentication, the information or data of teachers are encrypted and far away from the grip of hackers. With this authentication, the user will be alerted when another person tries to hack in.
Creating cyber safety activities for students: Your students must be being aware of cyberattacks. One thing that makes people fall into cyberbullying is the poor information on how to handle data online. Teachers are meant to alert their students and teach them all there is to cybersecurity.
Backup data: Teachers are being entrusted with a lot of things: students' information, school information, and even parents' information, making teachers victims of a cyberattack. Teachers should back up their data in the cloud so that it’ll always be safe even if the device gets missing, stolen, or changed.
Be cautious of public Wi-Fi: While using public Wi-Fi, you should be concerned about the impact it has on your phone to avoid phishing and other cyber vices.

WHAT PARENTS NEED TO DO

Parents are also victims of a cyberattack. From Ransomware which will demand money from you for a piece of information, they have about you to identity theft. Parents are meant to keep to the awareness of cyberattacks and turn toward cybersecurity.

Avoid pop-up links and sites: Be sure of the links you click and make sure they are secured before tapping on them. Most links are wearing the mask of malware and other viruses which could attack parents and result in a cyberattack. All these viruses can also come from an application like games, which is why parents should be careful before downloading things. Also, they should have an anti-virus that would help them scan away the virus that’s tugging behind the applications.
Cyber security tutor: Parents should enlighten their children on the benefits of cybersecurity, they should equip them in order not to be scammed by hackers. In case they don’t have the time, a cyber security tutor can help put the students through. With the help of these tutors, students, and even parents who aren’t aware of how to handle cyberattacks can help to avert the snares of hackers and save their data.
Using protected passwords: Parents should always make sure their passwords are strongly protected. Just like Chris Pirillo said, “Passwords are like underwear, don’t let people see it, change it very often, and don’t share it with people.” You should make sure your passwords are strongly protected and out of harm’s reach to avoid them getting to the wrong people. Parents should also alert their children of the benefits of keeping their passwords to themselves so they wouldn’t spill them to strangers.

CONCLUSION

Cybersecurity is something that should be at the back of everyone’s mind. Nowadays, scammers and hackers are growing in population, looking for whose account to hack, whose information to steal, and who they can bribe.

But if your account is password protected, your data backed up to the clouds, your data encrypted and far from reach from the eyes of the hackers. You’re good to go. Heed every piece of advice you get from cybersecurity because they will be needed in one way or the other.

An anonymous person said— “Security isn’t something you buy, it’s something you do, and it takes talented people to do it right.”

Remember, a password changed frequently, keeps the hackers away.

December 28, 2022