Today is the annual Safer Internet Day (SID), where over 100 countries, full of organizers and educators, are holding activities to promote safe and responsible use of online technology for the young. Microsoft recently pulled together results of its 3rd annual Microsoft Computing Index Survey. According to its results, identity theft may have a global impact as high as $5 to $6 billion. Additionally, of the 10 thousand surveyors, “15 percent reported being a victim of a phishing attack, 13 percent said their professional reputation had been compromised and 9 percent said they had their identity stolen”.

These unfortunate numbers could be proof that some users still don’t take the necessary precautions to protect themselves online. In fact, results also showed a mere 36 percent actually restrict what strangers can see on their personal social media/other sites. Microsoft believes there are many things you can do to be safer online. Hence, this year the company has launched their own campaign, “Do 1 Thing”, urging people to practice safe Internet activity and then share their efforts on Microsoft website, Safer Online.

While these numbers demonstrate the motive of SID, another survey, conducted by Disney’s Penguin Club, shows poor parental monitoring as another major Internet risk. With children ages 6 through 12 in the home, 36 percent of the 1,000 respondents said they rarely monitor their online activity. Yet, over 80 percent of parents believe Internet safety is “as important as the so-called “three-R’s”- reading writing and arithmetic”. “Sexting”, bullying, and other forms of unsolicited content have become custom daily dangers young people face online. So if parents believe in Internet safety, why aren’t they monitoring more closely? Well, the Disney survey also noted 36 percent of these parents found privacy control user manuals “too complicated”, a feeble and poor excuse.

Data composed from these surveys communicate the need for higher Internet awareness of users, as well as monitoring by parents. Although, fraudulent activity is a risk for people of any age, it’s awfully evident that parents need to have more conversations with their children. With children spending more time on their laptops or smartphones (per-day) than ever, they are able to navigate around everything so easily because it is second nature to them now. Therefore, you would think parents wouldn’t wait until something bad happened to begin enforcing more rules.

Internet safety awareness should be promoted on a daily basis, not just once per year. It should also be local, as well as global. The United Nations and its partners are celebrating today with an emphasis on education strategies geared towards the young. In a video message provided by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Secretary-General, “Step by step, by empowering and involving children, young people, parents and teachers, we’re striving to educate the next generation on what it means to be a good and responsible global citizen.” Besides taking part in Safer Internet Day, the bottom line is to practice safer Internet use daily and make that a habit.