Family office cybersecurity: What should you know?

The fact that children do not yet have a bank account does not stop cybercriminals from attacking them.

6 out of 10 children aged 8-12 are exposed to various cyber risks. Cyberbullying, downloading malicious apps, oversharing and other cyber threats are dangerous for children of all ages.

Unwillingly, a kid can share some sensitive information or expose their parents’ data while logged into their home computer.

So, how can you improve your family office cybersecurity? How can you teach children to be alert online?

What are the cybersecurity risks that families face?

Kids spend much time online – playing video games, chatting with friends, having video calls with classmates, etc. Yet, children are also over-trustful and can be easily lurked online.

As a parent, evaluate the security risks your children can face or involuntarily cause online.

So, what dangers are children prone to online?

Cyberbullying

Every second kid has experienced cyberbullying during their lifetime.

Cyberbullying includes sharing personal information about a kid to humiliate him.

It leaves a prominent mark on a child’s self-esteem or makes him vulnerable to manipulations and cybercrime.

Social engineering attacks

Even though children do not have bank accounts, they are still easily targeted with social engineering attacks.

A kid might receive an email that asks to click on a link to get a free game or disclose information about himself. Worse, a cybercriminal might pretend to be his teacher, a policeman, or a distant relative to deceive him.

Hidden malicious attachments might contain malicious software, and cybercriminals might use child’s personal data for identity theft and other crimes.

Malicious apps

Children are not as attentive to details as adults. They might not differentiate between a legitimate website and its replica.

Kids might get tempted to download a free video game from a random website or click on a link that promises cheat codes for the games they play. Such apps and websites might infect a device with malware.

It is dangerous because malicious software can run in the background and collect various data without nobody knowing about it.

When a parent uses the computer, the malware captures login credentials and steals financial information and other sensitive data.

How can you strengthen your family office cybersecurity?

Children tend to quickly adopt good habits once they know why it is essential for them to do it.

Your goal as a parent is not to scare a child. Instead, encourage and empower your little one to use the internet consciously and with increased alertness.

Here are the tips you can follow today to achieve reliable standards of cybersecurity for families:

Speak with your child regularly.

Let your child know why is family office cybersecurity valuable. Let the child understand that his personal input leaves his mark on the whole family’s security.

Besides, make sure to create a trust-based environment. Let your kid know there are no wrong questions. Encourage him to approach you whenever he has any doubts.

Discuss oversharing and privacy risks.

While kids want to share great moments from family holidays, cybercriminals know that the whole family is away and the house is empty.

Besides, kids can unknowingly share a video on social media that records parents’ conversations. This might accidentally disclose sensitive and private information.

Speak with a child and let him know what to share and what not to share online. Then, make the social media friends list private. Teach him not to post pictures of the home exterior, family cars, or school he goes to.

Teach a child to use a password manager.

The key to reliable cybersecurity is passwords. Poor credentials cause around 80% of all data breaches.

Teach your kid to use unique, randomly generated passwords to avoid data leaks. Show him how to use a password manager – one of the most reliable methods to store, manage, and share sensitive credentials online.

Besides, educate your child on good password-sharing habits. Let him understand the risks of plaintext password sharing via social media and emails. Teach him how to do it safely on a password manager.

Use a lock on your child’s phone.

If your child has his personal mobile phone, encourage him to protect it with a password or a simple numeric code.

First, it will help him build a habit of protecting what is valuable. Second, it will prevent other kids from using your child’s phone without his knowledge, thus preventing cyber-bullying.

Protect home computers that kids and parents use.

If children use the same computer as their parents, they might unknowingly access or disclose some sensitive information. A shared computer is especially vulnerable to financial crimes, phishing attacks, or malware.

A child might download an infected app or click on a malicious link. Later, when a parent uses the laptop, bank logins, passwords, and other sensitive content might become exposed.

Use antivirus and antimalware software to protect home devices. Also, use different accounts for the kids and parents. If possible, set restricted permissions on your child’s account (to avoid malicious downloads, settings changes, etc.)

Do not leave your work computer unattended.

One thing is to protect your family office cybersecurity when using devices only for leisure. Another thing is to protect work devices from accidental data disclosure, thefts, and leaks.

Never leave any work-related devices unlocked or without supervision. A child (or a pet) might unwillingly delete important information, accidentally click on some link, or share a password.

Strong family office cybersecurity starts with sitting down and having an open conversation with the little ones. Kids are great at adopting new habits – encourage them to do so.

After all, it will positively affect not only family office cybersecurity. Child’s future too.