New BYU website helps teens grow up safe and smart online

New BYU website helps teens grow up safe and smart online

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SALT LAKE CITY — It's estimated that 95 percent of teens are online. But more than half of them give no thought to the consequences of what they do there. Now, a group of Brigham Young University graduate students hopes to educate youth about being safe on the Internet.

Imagine giving your son or daughter the keys to a car without any driver’s education, without learning any basics. “Yet, many parents let their children use the Internet without learning the manual about how to be safe online,” said Julie Walton, a member of the BYU student group.

Walton said it’s a parent’s responsibility to keep their kids safe, but many think their teens are more educated than they really are.

"Forty-nine percent of parents think their teens know how to deal with uncomfortable content online, but fewer than one-third of teens agree," she said.

Walton and two fellow BYU masters students studying Information Systems Management saw a need. Their capstone project is a new site they created called cyberiq.org.

Devin Cope said it provides tools and information on staying safe online all in one spot. They looked at other sites, but found them either lacking information or too technical.

"The focus is on teens, and it is comprehensive but digestible,” he said.

Everything from passwords to phishing to bullying to mobile safety is updated with information from the experts. The goal is for educators and parents to form lessons, assemblies, or courses.

Online security
  • 740 million online records were exposed in 2013 through Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo!, Adobe, LivingSocial and Evernote
  • 89% of the breaches could have been prevented
  • Many of these breaches involved teenagers
  • 37% of all teens have smartphones, up from just 23% in 2011
  • 55% of teens say they give little or no thought to the consequences of posting something online
  • 49% of parents think their teens know how to deal with uncomfortable online
Source: cyberiq.org

"Use the content to teach the teens," said Cope.

Sean Southerland, also with the group, said they also are working on being where the teens are hanging out, with social media accounts on things like Google Plus, Facebook and Twitter that link back to cyberiq.org.

They also post new blogs on whatever new app or scam or fraud pops up. "Teens are on the cutting edge and sometimes they are on the bleeding edge. Teens and children sometimes are the casualties to whatever is new," said Southerland.

When these masters degree students graduate, the plan is for BYU's Department of Information Systems to continue the website, partnering with school districts and the community to help today’s youth grow up smart and safe online.

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Mary Richards

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