Carnegie Mellon Supports National “Help Keep Kids Connected and Protected” Cybersecurity Campaign

May 8, 2006
Contact: Chriss Swaney
(412) 268-5776

swaney@andrew.cmu.edu

Mara Ritti
National Cyber Security Alliance
(415)-975-2277
mara.ritti@porternovelli.com

PITTSBURGH—Carnegie Mellon University announced today that it will join forces with several other public and private organizations to support “Help Keep Kids Connected and Protected,” a national awareness initiative of the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA).

The NCSA is a public-private alliance of companies, associations and government agencies dedicated to cybersecurity awareness and education for home users, small businesses and the education community. Carnegie Mellon and NCSA, in collaboration with various education, government, and cybersecurity and safety organizations, will actively promote awareness of this national campaign and the “how-to” guide http://staysafeonline.org/connectedandprotected.html for teachers and parents, titled “An Educator, Parent and Guardian’s Guide: How to Teach Young People Safe Online Practices.”

This guide provides tailored tips and guidelines for educators and parents to use to keep teens safe while socializing online. Key highlights from the guide include:

Social networking and safe online practices that teachers or parents can communicate to their students and teens:

• Protect Privacy: Keep personal information personal.
• Minimize Negative Publicity: Posting inappropriate photos can lead to damaged reputations and unwanted attention from others.
• Don’t Talk to Strangers:Teach students to be careful about adding strangers to IM Buddy or friend lists — people are not always who they say they are.

Security and safety tips that parents can use at home:

• Supervise Computer Use: Keep the computer in an open area, be aware of other computers and other devices children may be using outside of the home and consider installing software to control where children go online.
• Keep the Lines of Communication Open: Use the Internet with your child and familiarize yourself with their activities online.
• Be a Technical Geek: Secure the family computer by regularly updating the operating system and installing a firewall, as well as up-to-date antivirus and anti-spyware software.

Dena Haritos Tsamitis, director of the Information Networking Institute (INI) and director of education, training and outreach for Carnegie Mellon CyLab, was part of the team that created the campaign. Both the INI and Carnegie Mellon CyLab Web sites will help to promote the initiative.

“Through initiatives such as the MySecureCyberspace portal and game, Carnegie Mellon has shown its commitment to keeping children safe online,” said Tsamitis. “We are proud to support NCSA in its efforts to create greater awareness for children’s cybersecurity.”

“Millions of teens use social networking sites to interact with their peers but they are unaware of the threats that these sites pose,” said Ron Teixeira, executive director of the NCSA. “This collaborative national effort is focused on encouraging teachers and parents to talk to their teens about safe online practices.”

About the Information Networking Institute and Carnegie Mellon CyLab: Carnegie Mellon’s Information Networking Institute (INI), a premier program for information networking and information security, was established by Carnegie Mellon in 1989 as the nation’s first research and education center devoted to information networking. As an integral department of the College of Engineering and a cooperative endeavor of the schools of engineering, computer science, business and public policy, the INI focuses on professional degree programs that integrate technologies, economics and policies of global and secure communication networks. The INI is the education partner of Carnegie Mellon CyLab, a university-wide, multidisciplinary initiative involving more than 200 faculty, students and staff at Carnegie Mellon. Carnegie Mellon CyLab is a bold and visionary effort aimed at creating a public-private partnership to develop new technologies for measurable, available, secure, trustworthy, and sustainable computing and communications systems and to educate individuals at all levels. For more information on the INI, visit http://www.ini.cmu.edu. For more on Carnegie Mellon CyLab, visit www.cylab.cmu.edu.

About the National Cyber Security Alliance: A not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization, the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) is a central clearinghouse for cybersecurity awareness and education for home users, small businesses and the education community. A public-private partnership, NCSA sponsors include the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Trade Commission, and many private-sector corporations and organizations. For more information on safe cybersecurity practices, visit www.staysafeonline.org.