The role our phones now play in our lives is amazing. It's funny that it's still called a phone, since it is such a departure from what used to be on the kitchen wall. I use my phone to take photos, connect with friends, do work, my banking, even control the lights in my living room. Given the multifaceted functions these computers (seriously, that's essentially what they are) can do, it astounds me how little security people utilize when carrying them around. Here's the story: recently, a student came into my office and explained that her phone had been stolen (she has recovered it). The thief reset her phone in attempts to use it, so all of her content was erased...including her photos. My first question was: "Did you have a passcode on it?". She said she did, but it was still set on simple passcode (just 4 numbers) AND she used the row straight down the middle...which is the first thing I always guess. People hear a lot about password and device security, and I think most of them just brush it off. It really is important to safeguard your information. Not only to keep yourself protected, but also to keep control of your content. Back up your phone and make a difficult passcode. If yours is numbers, change it- here are instructions on turning off simple passcode (on iPhone...need something else? Let me know). A good passcode contains:
It's never too early to help students develop good habits when protecting themselves online- passcode security is part of that. You can help by modeling good security, too!
What steps do you take to secure your online identity? Comments are closed.
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Kendra MurphyI'm a Technology Coach and IT Support for a school. I'm passionate about 1:1 classrooms technology in instruction. Archives
September 2015
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