Empowerment

Technologies
Quarter 1 – Module 2:
Online Safety, Security,
Ethics, and Etiquette
 Activity
Below is a questionnaire about how much information you have shared so far. Put
a check ( ) under Shared or Not Shared.
Types of Information Shared Not Shared
1. First name
2. Last name
3. Middle name
4. Current and previous school (s)
5. Your cellphone number
6. The name of your mother and father

7. The name of your siblings

8. Your address
9. Your home phone number
10. Your birthday
Analysis:
1. How many checks did you have for
shared?
2. Why did you share your full name?
3. Why did you share your birthday?
4. How many hours do you spend on the
Internet per day?
5. Can you live without the Internet for a
week?
6. How many aspects of your life depend on
the Internet?
 Online Safety and Security
Let us go back to the “How Safe Are You? “ test.
Let us visit each item and see how risky is to share
them.
Type of Information Risks
1. First name There is a risk sharing your first name. Chances are, a
“hacker” may already know plenty of stuff about you even if
you give out your first name
2. Last name If sharing your first is a small risk, having both your first and
last name is more risky. You will be vulnerable to being
searched for using search engines, which include image
search. Matching a name with a face is a modus to several
cybercrimes like “Identity Theft”
 Online Safety and Security
Type of Information Risks
3. Middle name Sharing your middle name alone is probably not the most risky of
these shared information, but sharing your full name would be.

4. Current and previous schools Most people who steal identities study their subject. They can use
this information for verification purposes.

5. Your cellphone number Your cellphone number should never be posted over the Internet.
The Internet is a public place.

6. The name of your mother and Risky, yet not as risky as posting their full names, especially your
father mother’s maiden name.
7. The name of your siblings Disclosing this is a huge risk. Strangers may pretend or use their
identity to dupe you.
 Online Safety and Security
Type of Information Risks
8. Your address Giving the Internet your number is one thing; giving them your
address is a whole other level. It will be much easier for criminals
to find you.
9. Your home phone number This shared information is more risky than sharing your personal
phone number. Scams usually use this information to deceive
you, one of which is when stranger pretends to know your parents
or pretends to be you.

10. Your birthday Letting people know your birthday is probably a must if you want
to get as many gifts as possible. Nut having it in profile makes
you vulnerable to identity theft.

The Internet is defined as the “Information

Superhighway.”
 Netiquette
The term “netiquette” is a coined or portmanteau term of
network and etiquette.
A netiquette is a set of ideal rules and conduct that a
netizen should observe in communicating and/or publishing
information and materials over the World Wide Web and in
ICT in general.
 Tips to Stay Safe Online

1. Be mindful of what you share online and what site you share it to.
2. Do not just accept terms and conditions; read it.
3. Check out the privacy policy page of a website to learn how the
website handles the information you share.
4. Know the security features of the social networking site you use.
By keeping your profile private, search engines will not be able
to scan your profile
 Tips to Stay Safe Online

5. Do not share your password with anyone.

6. Avoid logging in to public networks/Wi-Fi. Browsing in “incognito
(or private) mode,” a feature of the browser, will not protect you from
hackers.
7. Do not talk to strangers whether online or face-to-face.
8. Never post anything about a future vacation. It is similar to posting,
“Rob my house at this date.”
 Tips to Stay Safe Online

9. Add friends you know in real life.

10. Avoid using untrusted websites.
11. Install and update an antivirus software on your computer. Use
only one anti-virus software to avoid conflicts.
12. If you have a Wi-Fi at home, make it private network by adding a
password.
13. Avoid downloading anything from untrusted websites. You are
most vulnerable in peer-to-peer downloads (torrents) as the download
is most likely not monitored by the site owner.
 Tips to Stay Safe Online

14. Buy the software; do not use pirated ones.

15. Do not reply or click links from suspicious emails.
Internet Threats

1. MALWARE - stand for malicious software.

a. Virus – a malicious program designed to
replicate itself and transfer one computer to another
either through the Internet and local networks or data
storage like flash drives and CDs.
b. Worm – a malicious program that transfers
from one computer to another by any type of means.
Often, it uses a computer network to spread itself. For
example, the ILOVEYOU worm (Love Bug Worm)
created by a Filipino.
Internet Threats

c. Trojan – a malicious program that is

disguised as a useful program but once
downloaded or installed, leaves your PC
unprotected and allows hackers to get your
information.
*Rogue Security Software – tricks the user
into posing that it is a security software. It asks
the user to pay to improve his/her security but
in reality, they are not protected at all.
Internet Threats

d. Spyware – a program that runs in the background

without you knowing it (thus called “spy”). It has the
ability to monitor what you are currently doing and
typing through keylogging.
*Keyloggers – used to record the keystroke done by
the user. This is done to steal their password or any other
sensitive information. It can record email, messages, or
any information you type using your keyboard.
e. Adware – a program designed to send you
advertisements, mostly as pop-ups.
Internet Threats
Email Scam/Junk Mail /SPAM – unwanted email mostly
from bots or advertisements. It can be used to send malware.

Email Spoofing - is the creation of emails with a forged

sender address. The goal of email spoofing is to get recipients
to open, respond and engage with the email message. Email
spoofing can greatly increase the effectiveness of phishing
and other email-based cyber-attacks by tricking the
recipient into trusting the email and its sender (Tunggal
2019). It is usually used by spammers to hide the origin of
the spam.
Internet Threats
PHISHING – its goal is to acquire sensitive
personal information like passwords and
credit card details. This is done by sending you
an email that will direct the user to visit a
website and be asked to update his/her
username, password, credit card, or personal
information.
 Phishing
- the illegal act of sending emails or messages that appear to come
from authentic sources, but really come from spammers. Phishers often
try to get people to send them their personal information, everything
from account numbers to passwords.

- is a deceitful practice of getting your personal information using

email or text messages. Scammers may try to steal your passwords,
account numbers, or Social Security numbers. If they get that
information, they could gain access to your email, bank, or other accounts
(Federal Tr. Comm. ’19)
Internet Threats
Pharming – a more complicated way of phishing
where it exploits the DNS (Domain Name Service)
System.
- is a scamming practice in which malicious code is
installed on a personal computer or server, misdirecting
users to fraudulent Web sites without their knowledge or
consent. This happened when the code sent in an e-mail
modifies local host files on a personal computer. A computer
with a compromised host file will go to the fake Web site
even if a user types in the correct Internet address or clicks
on an affected bookmark entry (Rouse, Pharming n.d.).
 Hacker
- a clever or expert programmer who can gain unauthorized
access to other computers. He can "hack" his way through the
security levels of a computer system or network (Christensson,
Hacker Definition 2006). And can vandalizes the victims’ website,
steals personal information, obtains intellectual property, and
performs credit card fraud
Common threats to personal safety
Cyberstalking – is the same as physical
stalking by giving unwanted obsessive
attention to a specific person like following,
secret surveillance, persistent and
manipulative calling and texting, and other
means of approaching the victim
unexpectedly but cyber stalkers rely on
online technology to do it. Email, social
networks, instant messaging, personal data
available online – everything on the Internet
can be used by cyberstalkers to make
inappropriate contact with their victims
(Andrea 2020).
Cyberbullying - is bullying that takes place
over digital devices like cell phones,
computers, and tablets. It can occur through
SMS, Text, and apps, or online in social
media, forums, or gaming where people can
view, participate in, or share content. It
includes sending, posting, or sharing negative,
harmful, false, or mean content about
someone else like sharing personal or private
information causing embarrassment or
humiliation. Some cyberbullying crosses the
line into unlawful or criminal behavior (What
Is Cyberbullying 2020).
Online Predation - is the act of engaging an
underage minor into inappropriate sexual
relationships through the internet. Online
predators may attempt to initiate and seduce
minors into relationships through the use of chat
rooms or internet forums. Online predators may
try to lure kids and teens into sexual
conversations or even face-to-face meetings.
Predators will sometimes send obscene material
or request that kids send pictures of themselves
(Internet Safety for Kids-Staying safe from online
predators n.d.).
Flaming - is the act of saying mean
things online, usually in ALL
CAPS, and often in a public forum
with the intention to humiliate.
Online Ethics and Etiquette
In order for you to be safe and you can protect your private information
while you are working online, you need to know and apply online ethics
and etiquette.
 10 Basic Rules of Netiquette
The rules of etiquette are just as important in cyberspace as they are in the real world (Hartney
2020)

1.Make Real People a Priority

-If you are talking personally and face to face with someone,
stop browsing or chatting with anybody else in your cellphone.

2. Use Respectful Language

- Avoid name-calling, cursing, expressing deliberately offensive
opinions. In typing, don't use caps lock. Text in all caps is generally
perceived as yelling or flaming which cause misunderstanding and
trouble. Please don't forget to say please and thank you as
appropriate.
3. Share With Discretion
- Avoid sending naked sexy pictures, drunk pictures, drug use
pictures or unedited home video. If you would have a problem with
your boss, your parents, or your kids seeing it now, or at any point
in the future, don't post it online. Children should not post private
information online. Do not also share your location or picture
where you are currently at. Keep your personal information private.

4. Don't Exclude Others

- Don’t let others feel that they are the one you are talking to in
your obscure comment to your Facebook status, forum or Instagram
story. And if you have an in-joke to share with one other person, or
a small number of people in a larger online group, send them a
private message.
5. Choose Friends Wisely
- It is insulting to be dropped from someone's friend
list on a social media site. So, think about it before
sending a friend request or accepting an invitation. If
you don't want to be in touch with someone, don't add
them in the first place. This must be observed by kids
or teens so they will not be a victim of online predation.
People sometimes are good in pretending just to get
your attention or use fake accounts.
6. Respect People's Privacy
- One example is when you send email to multiple recipients,
don’t send it at once, you can send it privately individually or use
BCC (blind carbon copy) rather than CC (carbon copy). The same
goes for uploading photos or videos that include other people
because others who are in this photo don’t want to be viewed by
unknown friends. This also applies for tagging people on Facebook
because others don’t want to be tagged. Another example is don't
sign up for newsletters and other communications using someone
else's email address. If you apply this rule, hackers might not have
chance to enter and ruin your digital life.
7. Fact Check Before Reposting
- If you aren't sure of the facts that you’re going to repost,
email it to someone who does know or can find out. Or do a
search on Google or snopes.com. Because once you’ve reposted a
fake news or false facts, many can possibly believe it and spread
once again. Don't forget also that many viruses are circulated via
chain letters and invitations. So forwarding or reposting this kind
of messages will not bring good luck but rather bad luck. Don’t
forget to cite the owner of the post or where it came from. And
before posting, check whether it is appropriate or inappropriate to
others.
8. Respond to Emails Promptly
- In doing this, you can easily check whether the emails you received are
spams, unsolicited messages or crafty stuffs and delete these right away. But
if you send your email to your friends or set it as public, then you need to
respond immediately. But double-check where it really came because there are
people who are fond of playing or making fake emails just to get in touch with
you.
9. Update Online Information
- Don't leave inaccurate information online that will mislead your friends
or your customers if you have an online business. If you have a business
website, update it regularly. Like your operating hours, if you are not available
for that time, change it right away.
10. Think before Click
- Don’t hesitate to think before clicking because you might click an
unknown links or files that are likely to contain malware which will infect your
devices or a link to hacker’s website. Think before clicking Like in social media
posts because it might be a suicide post that will end to death because you
liked his suicidal post.
In the table below, mark with a check the internet threats that can
be avoided in doing each netiquette. Internet threats are
represented by letter in the table under Internet Threats column.

a. Computer Virus
b. Cyberbullying
c. Cyberstalking
d. Flaming
e. Hacker
f. Online Predation
g. Pharming
h. Phishing
i. Spam
j. Spyware