Creating a Positive and Safe Digital Footprint
What is a Digital Footprint? Why is internet safety important?
Digital footprint is a person’s information that exists online. A digital footprint, sometimes a digital shadow, can be used to track a person’s online activities and devices. Being safe on the internet is important because if you’re not there is a risk of accidentally disclosing their personal data, illegal downloads, file sharing, spyware, viruses, inappropriate advances and cyber bullying. Dangerous/unsafe activities of leaving a digital footprint are bullying and harassment, scams and danger to reputation.
To build a positive digital footprint you must think before posting because it never really goes away when you delete it, searching yourself up to see that you might not want anyone seeing and if you do to check privacy settings. A positive footprint will benefit your future opportunities and your reputation.
To reduce and protect your digital footprint are by deleting old email accounts, limiting social media to reduce a digital footprint, skip the survey, create a spam email address, remove yourself from people search sites, set up stealth mode when you search. Digital footprints can negatively affect your life by influencing someone’s opinion or Perceptive of you and by ruining friendships and relationships. It can also affect your future because college admission officers look at an applicant’s social media profile which includes Facebook, twitter and Instagram to learn more about you. Digital footprints can expose an individual’s private psychological sphere into the social sphere and can be used to get personal information without the person’s knowing.
Core Competency Reflection
My online support network Teachers’ TEAMS pages, is helpful to me because they.. they provide me with work that I missed when I’m not at school.
Some of my preferred strategies for maintaining a healthy, balanced online presence include…not abusing my time online by staying on my computer all day, manage my anger by not spreading hate messages on someone’s video and be nice and positive to everyone.
I know that my digital footprint can have both positive and negative consequences, including…so I adjust my actions to… including my relationships with my friends, family, and peers, so I adjust my actions to create a positive, safe, and helpful digital footprint.
Works Cited
How Can You Protect and Reduce Your Digital Footprint? | Allstate Identity Protection. https://www.allstateidentityprotection.com/business/content-hub/how-can-you-protect-and-reduce-your-digital-footprint. Accessed 12 Dec. 2022.
‘Myfuture – Australia’s National Career Information Service’. Myfuture, https://myfuture.edu.au/career-articles/details/building-a-positive-digital-footprint. Accessed 12 Dec. 2022.
Staying Safe Online | Nidirect. 7 Dec. 2015, https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/staying-safe-online.