{"id":629,"date":"2013-01-27T19:18:04","date_gmt":"2013-01-28T03:18:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/internetsafety.trendmicro.com\/?p=629"},"modified":"2013-01-27T19:18:04","modified_gmt":"2013-01-28T03:18:04","slug":"help-kids-keep-their-online-information-private-and-advertisers-at-bay","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.trendmicro.com\/internet-safety\/blog\/help-kids-keep-their-online-information-private-and-advertisers-at-bay\/","title":{"rendered":"Help Kids Keep Their Online Information Private and Advertisers at Bay"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Anne Livingston and Lynette Owens<\/p>\n

Kids spend a lot of time online. \u00a0They go online to find answers for homework, coordinate\u00a0school projects, share events,\u00a0play games and watch videos.\u00a0 While online, they may feel like they are sharing with just family and friends but companies are also listening.\u00a0 Websites and advertising networks use tracking tools to record what kids and adults do online.\u00a0 The Wall Street Journal<\/a>\u00a0found that advertisers collect this information to build consumer profiles.\u00a0 These profiles do not include real names but include almost everything else: age, tastes, hobbies, shopping habits, race, interests and location.\u00a0 Information that kids post and even the information they don\u2019t post such as where they click, what they like, what they\u2019re searching for \u2013 is valuable data to organizations who want to sell them something.<\/p>\n

The Pew Center found that 81% of parents\u00a0are concerned\u00a0about how much information advertisers collect about their kids.\u00a0 Kids are especially vulnerable since most do not realize advertisers are tracking them or that their information is used to send them the perfect ad.\u00a0 These ads are not simple banners displayed across the screen.\u00a0 Companies are developing ads that are interactive and utilize kids\u2019 personal information in the ad itself.<\/p>\n

A Teen’s Digital Day<\/strong><\/p>\n

To discover how information is generated and used, let\u2019s look at the day of a typical teen: what she does online, how companies track her activities and how they use this information to market to her:\u00a0<\/p>\n

Wake up. Check social network accounts<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Some of the most personal data being collected online is the data kids enter themselves. When they sign up for a web service, they share their email, name, and other profile information. Within these services, companies may gather\u00a0more\u00a0information by asking them to fill out a survey or take a quiz.<\/p>\n

Quickly, look up an answer for Geography homework<\/strong><\/p>\n

When kids visit a website, companies place small text files called cookies on their computer. Tracking companies, data brokers and advertising networks use these cookies to collect data about what they do online. A study by Berkeley’s Web Privacy Census found that the most popular websites placed 50 third-party cookies on average, with one placing 234<\/a>. The Wall Street Journal<\/a> also found that popular children’s websites installed more data-gathering technology on computers than websites\u00a0for\u00a0adults.<\/p>\n

Write an email to their teacher.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Google scans the content of emails sent through their free e-mail service Gmail. They do this in part to\u00a0provide\u00a0spam filtering and virus detection. They also search emails for\u00a0keywords in hopes of finding out more about the person\u2019s interests and add them to their online profile. They can now deliver banner ads within their Gmail service based on the things you typed or searched for.<\/p>\n

Send Facebook friend a congratulations message.\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Same is true for Facebook messaging. When kids send a\u00a0message to a Facebook friend<\/a>, Facebook automatically scans their message looking for viruses and keywords. When kids mention a brand or company in their message it can appear in their Facebook \u201clikes\u201d. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Ride the bus to school and surf the web on<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong>smartphone<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Targeted ads are going mobile. When kids search for things on their mobile phones, information such as\u00a0their physical location\u00a0can be\u00a0automatically collected. Ad networks can know where they are\u00a0and send them an\u00a0ad for a store nearby based\u00a0on their location.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Find a new app and download it to their mobile device<\/strong><\/p>\n

Mobile apps collect all sorts of data<\/a>. Some Apps collect information such as\u00a0location, phone numbers and\u00a0contact lists. The FTC reviewed over 200 different games and application popular\u00a0among\u00a0younger children<\/a> and found many of these apps sell information to different advertising networks.\u00a0 For example, the app Angry Birds shares information with four companies that target mobile ads, two mobile ad networks, an app analytics site and an ad optimization and rewards company<\/a><\/p>\n

After dinner, log on to Facebook and surf the web.<\/strong><\/p>\n

When logged in to Facebook, Facebook stores every web page members visit that\u00a0has\u00a0a like button regardless of\u00a0whether\u00a0they clicked it on any of the like buttons (and many websites have this).<\/p>\n

Send out a few tweets<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Twitter<\/a>\u00a0collects what a member follows and retweets. Twitter uses this information to\u00a0figure\u00a0out a member\u2019s interests and allows\u00a0an advertiser\u00a0to target Twitter users based on these interests.<\/p>\n

Take a picture and share it on Instagram<\/strong><\/p>\n

According to Pew Center<\/a>, 80% of teens on social networks post pictures and videos. One of the most popular apps for sharing pictures is Instagram. Instagram, owned by Facebook, recently changed their privacy policy<\/a> to allow for profile information and user contents such as photos and comments to be shared between the two companies. This does not mean kids Instagram pictures will automatically appear on Facebook. What it does mean is that the two companies could at some point share kids\u2019 data to send them targeted ads or possibly use their photos in a sponsored story.<\/p>\n

Cruise around YouTube watching 10 most popular videos<\/strong><\/p>\n

Youtube\u00a0<\/a>is part of Google. YouTube uses cookies to collect information about the user’s computer or the user watching a video. Advertisers target people who are watching YouTube using information collected such as age, gender, videos watched and other specific interests.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

By the end of one day, companies have collected information on what a kid likes,\u00a0searches for, writes, watches, and downloads. And it happens every day.\u00a0 Companies analyze all of this\u00a0information to\u00a0decide\u00a0what a kid is likely to buy. \u00a0A teen who visits fashion websites and watches “What Not to Wear” clips on YouTube may see ads for the latest designer shoes. A\u00a0Company may also decide this teen is\u00a0health conscious and may show them products for weight loss.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Companies are also creating advertisements that incorporate kids\u2019 information. For example, Dr. Pepper launched a\u00a0commercial integrating a Facebook user’s personal information within the ad<\/a>.\u00a0 The ad, called the “best day of high school<\/a>“, was shot in the first person.\u00a0 Throughout the video they move through the high school images and data from a teen’s Facebook profile pop up.<\/p>\n

Wherever they go online, companies are marketing to them.\u00a0 An FTC\u00a0report<\/a> found while total ad spending directed at children dropped by 19.5 percent, digital ads and new media spending increased by 50 percent.\u00a0 New media, which includes company-sponsored websites, internet, digital, word-of-mouth, and viral marketing, accounted for\u00a0about\u00a07% of all reported\u00a0youth directed\u00a0marketing expenditures, up from 4% in 2006.<\/p>\n

What You Can Do<\/strong><\/p>\n

Kids can\u00a0reduce\u00a0the amount of information that\u2019s being collected about them online. Here are a few things you can do to help them.<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Use privacy settings on any social network or website that has them.\u00a0 While sites like Facebook can still collect data about you, it\u2019s best to be in the habit of sharing only as much as necessary with anyone online.<\/li>\n
  2. Delete cookies or use a browser that has a Do Not Track feature. Parents and kids can turn on Do Not Track in the four most popular browsers: Mozilla, Safari, Internet Explorer and Google Chrome<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  3. Avoid certain websites or refrain from downloading apps that collect a lot of information.<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. Turn off the geo-location feature for the mobile apps that don\u2019t need to know where your kids physically are. Some apps need it to work (such as Google Maps) but most don\u2019t (such as Angry Birds).\u00a0 Also consider turning it off for the phone\u2019s camera so that the photos they share are not tagged with their location.<\/li>\n
  5. Use security software on any device your kids is accessing the Internet from.\u00a0 While companies are collecting information to sell you something, there are cybercriminals who might try to steal your information for other purposes.<\/li>\n
  6. Teach kids to think critically about any offers they see online. If an offer looks too good to be true, it probably is.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    It\u2019s important to talk to kids about how companies are tracking them online.\u00a0 By understanding how companies collect and use their information, they\u2019ll understand a bit better how that ad for those shoes follows them from website to website.\u00a0 By becoming smart consumers and protecting their information, kids can keep the time they\u2019re surfing enjoyable and safe.<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/a>Anne Livingston<\/strong> is the creator of the KidsPrivacy blog. She is writer and speaker with a passion for teaching parents and kids how to manage life online. Every day, she finds inspiration by watching her own three children raise <\/strong>digital pets, masquerade as penguins, or film YouTube videos. To learn more about raising kids in a digital world, check out her blog at www.kidsprivacy.net or follow her on twitter @kidsprivacy.<\/em><\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/a>Lynette Owens<\/strong> is the founder and global director of Trend Micro\u2019s Internet Safety for Kids and Families (ISKF) program.\u00a0 As a\u00a0mom of two school-aged children, Lynette founded the ISKF program in 2008 to help deliver on the company\u2019s vision of making a world safe for the exchange of digital information.\u00a0 The program, active in 19 countries, helps kids, families, and schools become safe, responsible, and successful users of technology.\u00a0 Follow Lynette on Twitter @lynettetowens<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Kids spend a lot of time online, and the information they post – and even the information they don\u2019t post such as where they click, what they like, what they\u2019re searching for \u2013 is valuable data to organizations who want to sell them something.<\/p>\n

    Whether they know it or not, in a single day, kids who use social networks and mobile devices are sharing lots of data that can be used to create and deliver very targeted advertising to them. Here’s a look at part of a teen’s day, the digital trail they’re leaving, and what you can do to help kids protect their privacy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,4],"tags":[80,13,44,8,47,35,16,75,5,48,66,81,25,10,55,12,21,67],"class_list":["post-629","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-for-parents","category-for-teachers","tag-advertising","tag-cell-phones","tag-coppa","tag-digital-citizenship","tag-digital-literacy","tag-do-not-track-list","tag-facebook","tag-instagram","tag-internet-safety","tag-media-literacy","tag-mobile","tag-online-ads","tag-online-privacy","tag-online-safety","tag-security","tag-social-networking","tag-teens","tag-twitter","wpautop"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.trendmicro.com\/internet-safety\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/629","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.trendmicro.com\/internet-safety\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.trendmicro.com\/internet-safety\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.trendmicro.com\/internet-safety\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.trendmicro.com\/internet-safety\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=629"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.trendmicro.com\/internet-safety\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/629\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.trendmicro.com\/internet-safety\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=629"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.trendmicro.com\/internet-safety\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=629"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.trendmicro.com\/internet-safety\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=629"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}