Betty teaches you the importance of keeping your OFFLINE identity separate from your ONLINE identity
Betty
Cyber Defender & Clubhouse Supervisor
Betty learned the hard way about sharing too much information online when rumors she had spread through her online blog upset some of her friends. Since then she has made it her goal to educate everyone about what information is inappropriate or unsafe to share online to prevent others from getting hurt.
As a Cyber Defender, Betty focuses on the most important information you should never share online, your offline identity.
A stumble may prevent a fall
- English Proverb
Tea and crumpets
Interests:Chatting, macrame, collecting teacups
May 29 2008
Cut Off
The battle is at an end. I no longer have to sit in an office and watch the communication traffic. I went by the Clubhouse today. The place is a wreck. Nils certainly did a number on it when he realized that Dr. Keen's equipment wasn't actually there. It's going to be a couple of months before I get the place repaired and running again. At least summer is just around the corner.
posted by Betty
topics: Miscellaneous
May 27 2008
Safe Online Communication: Your Away Message
If you're using chatting programs like Instant Messenger, you may already know how to set up an away message. This can be a fun way to let your friends know if you're not available to chat with at the moment, like if you are on the phone. But you have to be just as careful with what information you put in your away message as you do with all online communications.
You must remember that anyone can read your away message. You might as well be posting it on a billboard in the middle of town. It could be tempting to set up your away message to say you're going down to the ice cream shop, in case your friends see it and want to join you, but by doing that you're also letting every weirdo stranger in Cyberspace know exactly where you are in real life!
If you want to let your friends know where you'll be or what you are doing, just pick up the phone and give them a ring. Keep your away messages simple, like BRB for Be Right Back. Don't put any personal information in them, especially where you are or your phone number.
posted by Betty
topics: Safe Online Communication
May 15 2008
Results of Teamwork
The Cyber Villains keep falling right into the traps that the cadets set for them. I am still performing tweaks to the communication system, changing algorithms and ensuring our conversations are safe. But from the messages rolling through I can see how much our teamwork is paying off. We could never have gotten this far without everyone's support.
posted by Betty
topics: Miscellaneous
May 13 2008
Personal Information: Your ONLINE/OFFLINE identities
Your OFFLINE identity consists of all of your personal information, like your name, age, and where you live. Your OFFLINE identity is the real you, the one your family and friends at school know and love. When you're in Cyberspace, you never ever want to reveal your OFFLINE identity or any of your personal information to anyone. It can be very dangerous to do so!
Instead of using your OFFLINE identity in Cyberspace, you need to create an ONLINE identity for yourself. Usually this just means coming up with an alias or screenname, something like FunkyMonkey or iLovePinkSocks, just as long as it doesn't contain your real name or any of your personal information.
Whenever you're in Cyberspace, only use your ONLINE identity to be safe. If someone starts asking you questions about your personal information or your OFFLINE identity, the best response is to just ignore them. If they continue to bother you even after you tell them you don't share that information in Cyberspace, you should tell a trusted adult about them. You can also block people to stop them from sending you emails and Instant Messages.
posted by Betty
topics: Personal Information
May 12 2008
First Victory
We've taken out our first Cyber Villain. Maya help cripple M.C. Spammer today. He was still stunned by the reversed denial of service attack Carlo had set up for him. Seeing Maya at work made me realize how much that girl needs to get out of the office. She was flawless in her execution of the trap.
posted by Betty
topics: Miscellaneous
May 6 2008
Manning the Post
I've been stuck with making sure that communication passes from the Defenders to the cadets safely and securely. Dr. Keen's new system is working perfectly. I was pretty worried today. Messages were flying as the first set of Cyber Villains came in to attack. I had to manually push some messages through. I see why they wanted someone making sure that everything gets through.