Konten bei Instagram, TikTok oder Amazon werden mit Passwörtern gesichert. So sollen Fremde keinen Zugriff auf sensible Daten wie Adresse, Kontonummer usw. erhalten oder im Namen anderer etwas posten oder Sachen bestellen. Manche Passwörter sind allerdings so einfach, dass sie mit technischer Hilfe von Kriminellen einfach “geknackt” werden können. Kinder sollten lernen, wie sichere Passwörter aussehen, sobald sie digitale Geräte nutzen oder im Netz unterwegs sind.
Ein sicheres Passwort hat mindestens 8 Zeichen und besteht aus Groß- und Kleinbuchstaben, Zahlen und Sonderzeichen. Je länger das Passwort, desto sicherer ist es. Vermeiden Sie persönliche Passwörter wie die Geburtsdaten Ihrer Kinder, denn sie sind mit etwas Recherche leicht herauszufinden. Zahlenfolgen (zum Beispiel „12345“), alphabetische Buchstabenfolgen (wie „abcdefg“) oder eine Folge benachbarter Tasten auf der Tastatur (wie „qwertz“) sind ebenfalls nicht sicher. Am besten eignen sich Wörter, die in keinem Wörterbuch stehen und nichts mit Ihnen oder dem Dienst, bei dem Sie sich anmelden möchten, zu tun haben.
Ein sicheres Passwort zu erstellen und sich auf Dauer daran zu erinnern, ist gar nicht so einfach. Dabei hilft eine Eselsbrücke. Denken Sie sich einen Satz aus, den Sie sich gut merken können, beispielsweise „Elternguide.online informiert und unterstützt Eltern 365 Tage im Jahr!“. Wenn Sie nur die Anfangsbuchstaben, Zahlen und Sonderzeichen des Satzes herausnehmen, entsteht folgendes Passwort: „Eoi+uE365TiJ!“ Diese Zeichenfolge ist sicher und Sie vergessen sie nicht so schnell. Wenn Ihnen kein eigener Satz einfällt, können Sie auch an ein Sprichwort denken, zum Beispiel: „Wenn zwei sich streiten, freut sich der Dritte!“. Überprüfen Sie die Sicherheit Ihres Passwortes mit dem Passwort-Check. Mit dem Passwort-Schlüssel-Automat können sich Eltern und Kinder Passwörter-Schlüssel ausdenken, die einfach zu merken sind.
Ein Passwort sollte regelmäßig geändert werden. Wir empfehlen, für verschiedene Plattformen jeweils ein eigenes Passwort zu verwenden, da es immer mal zu Datenlecks und dem Diebstahl von Nutzerdaten kommen kann. Kriminelle könnten auf alle Accounts zugreifen, wenn immer das gleiche Passwort verwendet wurde.
Wenn Sie sich nicht so viele verschiedene Passwörter merken können oder wollen, nutzen Sie am besten einen Passwortmanager. Damit lassen sich Passwörter verwalten und verschlüsselt speichern. Sie müssen sich dann nur noch ein einziges Passwort für den Manager merken. Dieses sogenannte Masterpasswort sollte besonders sicher sein! Ein kostenfreier, datenschutzfreundlicher Passwort-Manager ist zum Beispiel KeepassXC.
Auf der Internetseite des Bundesamts für Sicherheit in der Informationstechnik können Sie mehr zu sicheren Themen nachlesen und anschauen. Neben sicheren Passwörtern sind auch Themen wie Verschlüsselung, Zwei-Faktor-Authentifizierung und App-Berechtigungen wichtig, wenn es um die Sicherheit im Netz geht. Klären Sie Ihr Kind darüber auf, wie es seine Daten im Internet schützen kann und nehmen Sie gemeinsam Einstellungen am Smartphone vor.
YouTube is by far the most popular online platform for videos. It is free of charge and is mainly financed by advertisements that are played before or during the clips. With YouTube Premium, you can use YouTube content for a fee without commercial interruption and with other benefits. The premium version looks very similar to the free YouTube, but can do a lot more.
To use the service, you need to register and decide whether you want to use it alone or together with your family. Content can be downloaded and played offline – but only in the app. You can also listen to music content in the background while using another app at the same time. Turning off advertisements must be enabled in the settings.
YouTube Premium includes the ad-free variant of the music streaming service YouTube Music. (This is also available as a free app with ads.) It also includes the YouTube Gaming app, and you get access to YouTube Original – exclusive content that can only be seen on YouTube.
Children and young people use YouTube for various things in everyday life. They follow YouTubers, get information and are entertained. For those who use a lot of music, movies and videos, a premium account might be attractive. Especially because you can watch videos without commercial interruption.
If you like to use YouTube as a family, the offer is a bit cheaper compared to other streaming offers. YouTube is an all-rounder with a very broad offer. If you want to use only series or only music, other offers are better suited.
Google is behind all of YouTube ‘s offerings. Among other things, the American company earns its money by collecting and analyzing user data. Although the many connected services have some advantages, privacy concerns are appropriate.
YouTube points out that only ads set by them can be turned off. If ads appear in users’ videos (e.g., as product placement), you’ll see them in YouTube Premium videos, too.
Pay attention to the data you provide about yourself when registering and whether all the information is necessary. Read the privacy policy and familiarize yourself with the app’s capabilities, for example, at mobilsicher.de.
The wide range of YouTube can tempt you to keep watching and forget about the time. Mutually agreed rules help to ensure that this does not happen so quickly. For younger children, we also recommend using the YouTube Kids app to ensure that your child only sees age-appropriate content. With a YouTube Premium family account, you can enable or hide different features depending on your age group. However, keep in mind that inappropriate content may still appear, as it is sometimes well hidden. Accompanying your child’s use of YouTube and other media allows you to talk about it and be there for questions.
In many families the week is strictly planned with kindergarten, school, work, doctor’s appointments, sports and and and. Sometimes there is hardly any time left for anything else. All the more convenient when you can do things from home, such as online shopping. Shopping over the Internet is extremely popular and is part of many people’s everyday lives. Of course, it’s much more relaxing to buy Christmas presents from the comfort of your couch and without the crowds than in crowded shopping malls. Especially in the weeks and days before holidays, online retailers entice customers with offers and discounts.
Your child grows up taking for granted that products can be ordered over the Internet with the click of a mouse. Especially for teenagers it is very tempting and easy to send orders on their own. But in doing so, they don’t necessarily have a sense that money is being spent because it’s not in their hands. This is no different with in-app purchases than it is with online shopping. As a parent, you should talk to your child about the fact that you should also shop consciously over the Internet and pay attention to some things.
Only those who have reached the age of majority have full legal capacity. This means that children under the age of 18 are only allowed to make purchases and enter into contracts within their allowance. More information about this is available from the consumer center.
In order to store online, you often need a credit card or a Paypal account in addition to an account with the respective store. However, you must also be of legal age to do so. However, sites such as Amazon and the like do not check the age for sure when registering. So you should make sure that your child does not have access to your credit card information. Even if your son or daughter orders online on account, the order – i.e. the purchase contract – is only legally binding if you have approved it beforehand or subsequently.
Inform your child about this. It is best if you only shop together on the Internet.
Especially before holidays like Christmas or on special promotion days like Black Friday, online retailers lure customers with special offers on various products. Often tricks are used, e.g. the manufacturer’s recommended retail price (RRP) is set against the special price, although this is rarely demanded by a retailer. Time-limited special discounts put pressure on the consumer to buy immediately. Children and young people in particular could be strongly influenced by these offer deadlines.
In addition, there are more and more dubious and fraudulent online stores that can hardly be distinguished from real stores. Take a close look at such providers and research the experiences of other customers. Talk to your child about this so that once he or she is old enough, he or she will not fall for scammers. After all, shopping at a fake store can quickly turn into a rip-off trap with financial losses. Tips on how to recognize fake stores are also available from the consumer advice center.
Just because online shopping is so easy and fast doesn’t mean everything has to be ordered over the Internet. So the batteries can also be bought in the supermarket or the book in the bookstore around the corner. Make your child aware that there is a long delivery process behind every order. This not only means a lot of hassle for many people, but for many orders it is also bad for the environment. Order only the goods and quantity you need to avoid unnecessary deliveries and costly returns. Furthermore, it is important that your child learns not to be lured by discounts and bargain offers. Before each purchase, therefore, the question should be asked whether the products offered are really needed.
