Data Privacy In The Age of Online Learning
More and more schools are adopting online learning as an alternative method to in-class interaction and learning. As this happens, cyber security experts are raising issues with the lack of security and privacy for children who are now spending more time online.
There is an increasing risk of children exposing themselves to malicious elements on the internet. Security experts are afraid that this could lead to children building a commercial profile that could be exploited by advertisers.
On the extreme end they could expose too much of their personal identifiable information leading to hacks and identity theft.
What should parents, teachers, schools and the children do to secure themselves while learning?
Train the Children on Online Security Risks
At home, parents should train and monitor their children’s use of the internet and computers. This will help to make sure that children aren’t exposing themselves to internet security risks as they learn.
In age appropriate words, parents and teachers should teach children about the dangers lurking on the internet. Train them not to open every website they see and not to click on each link they come across.
Further, children need to learn that they shouldn’t give their names and location of their home to anyone on the internet.
Invest in A VPN
To ensure the security of your child as they learn at home, invest in a VPN. Download, install and activate a VPN into the device that your child is using for school. Make sure that the VPN is always on while your child is using the computer.
A VPN provides you with extra security. It gives you a different IP from one that can easily pinpoint your location. It also encrypts every piece of information that comes from your device. You can get free IP from NY with a VPN to ensure that your children are secure as they go to school online.
A VPN will make sure that information from your device is not intercepted by other devices and people online.
Schools Should Invest in Their Own Learning Platforms
Schools should own the learning platforms that they use. This ensures that the content and the learners are safe when learning.
Rather than relying on commercial platforms that offer free services, a platform that the school owns is more flexible and easy to use.
When using a learning management system, children should be encouraged to use strong passwords to access it. This helps to enhance their training on ensuring their security at any time they are online.
When a school has its own learning platform, it can easily monitor and secure their participants. Ensure that the learning platform can support the content in different forms. It can offer video, text books and even downloadable notes.
With their own learning management systems, schools are able to protect their learners from cyber bullying and harassment. In addition, they create a tightly controlled study environment where students and teachers follow instructions as provided.
Use Strong Passwords
Passwords are an integral part of internet security. They help protect data and ensure that only the rightful owner of the account can access it.
When setting passwords, we should follow instructions provided to create a strong password. A strong password is a mix of high and lower case letters, numbers and symbols. In addition, passwords should not be easy to guess. This helps to enhance learner’s security.
Strong passwords ensure data privacy through identity authentication in the age of online learning.
Training for Educators
An integral aspect of data privacy in online learning is making sure that teachers and school administrators learn about online security. Educators need to evaluate technology solutions used for online learning like Kahoot, but even then there are students that use Kahoot bots for crushing that.
They need to select platforms that guarantee the maximum security for students and educators. Platforms that can’t be invaded by external parties when class is ongoing.
Rather than use Zoom and Meet, educators should look for specialized education platforms. Platforms that are managed from the school technology department. This gives control to the school. Thus, they can ensure maximum security for their students and themselves.
Conclusion
As online learning grows, there are increasing concerns about data privacy and the security of the children. As such, there is a growing need for educators to learn and train their students on data security and their own privacy.
Some suggestions to enhance data privacy and security in online learning include investing in a VPN, training the children and educators and having platforms that are controlled by the schools.