EMPOWERMENT TECHNOLOGIES

ONLINE SAFETY, SECURITY, AND NETIQUETTE

SELF-LEARNING HOME TASK #2

MELC: Apply online safety, security, ethics, and etiquette standards in the use of Competency Code:
ICTs as it would relate to their specific professional tracks. CS_ICT11/12-ICTPT-Ia-b-2
Learning Objectives:
1) Identify online risks and threats.
2) Discover online safety procedures and etiquette.
3) Design safety tips when using the internet or when using online applications,

A. Background Information for Learners (Readings/Discussions)

Online Safety, Security and Netiquette

Online safety refers to the practices and precautions that should be observed
when using the internet to ensure that the users as well as their computers and
personal information are safe from crimes associated with using the internet.
Netiquette is a combination of the words network and etiquette. It is a set of
rules for behaving properly online. Below are the 10 rules of netiquette:

To avoid cyber-crimes, follow the following online safety measures:

a) Never give any personal information out about yourself over the internet.
b) Do not give any banking or sensitive information unless you are sure that it is a
reputable business having a secure service. To make sure that you are in a
secured network, the website address should begin with “https://’ as opposed to
“http://”. Never access your accounts by following an email link, instead type
your URL by yourself.

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 Info source: https://www.wikihow.com/Find-if-a-Website-Is-Legitimate

c) Never open messages or attachments from someone you do not know.

d) Regularly review your privacy settings in your online accounts to make sure you
are not sharing important personal information.
e) When using a public computer terminal, be sure to delete your browsing data
before leaving.
f) Keep your software updated to avoid security holes.
g) Do not download or install software or anything on your computer or cell phone
that is unknown to you.

Kinds of Online Threats

Online threat is deemed any malicious act that attempts to gain access to a
computer network without authorization or permission from the owners. These are
usually done by computer hackers who uses the World Wide Web to facilitate
cybercrime.
The following are the top kinds of online threats that you should be aware of:

 Phishing happens when an email is sent from an internet criminal disguised as

an email from a legitimate, trustworthy source. The message is meant to lure you
into revealing sensitive or confidential information.
 Pharming happens when a hacker (or “pharmer”) directs an internet user to a
fake website instead of a legitimate one. These “spoofed” sites can capture a
victim’s confidential information including usernames, passwords, and credit card
data, or install malware on their computer. Pharmers usually focus on websites in
the financial sector, including banks, online payment platforms, or other e-
commerce destinations.
 Internet Scam generally refers to someone using internet services or software to
defraud or take advantage of victims, typically for financial gain. Cybercriminals
may contact potential victims through personal or work email accounts, social
networking sites, dating apps, or other methods in attempts to obtain financial or
other valuable personal information. Online scams may come in various forms
such as lottery scam, charity fraud scams, job offer scams, and online dating
scams to name a few.
 Internet robots are also known as spiders, crawlers, and web bots. It is a
software application that is programmed to do certain tasks. Bots are automated,
which means they run according to their instructions without a human user.
Some bots are useful, such as search engine bots that index content for search or
customer service bots that help users. Other bots are "bad" and are programmed
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 to break into user accounts, scan the web for contact information for sending
spam, or perform other malicious activities. If it's connected to the Internet, a bot
will have an associated Internet Protocol (IP) address.
 Malware or malicious software, is any program or file that is harmful to a
computer user. Here are the most common offenders in the rogues’ gallery of
malware:
a) Adware (Advertising Supported Software) is unwanted software designed to
throw advertisements up on your screen. Example, pop-up ads and banner
ads.
b) Spyware is malware that secretly observes the computer user’s activities
without permission and reports it to the software’s author. Example is a
keylogger.
c) Virus and Worms are malwares that attach to another program and, when
executed—unintentionally by the user—replicates itself by modifying other
computer programs and infecting them with its own bits of code.
d) Trojan or Trojan horse is one of the most dangerous malware types. It
usually represents itself as something useful in order to trick you. Once it’s
on your system, the attackers behind the Trojan gain unauthorized access
to the affected computer. From there, Trojans can be used to steal financial
information or install threats like viruses and ransomware.
e) Ransomware is a form of malware that locks you out of your device and/or
encrypts your files, then forces you to pay a ransom to get them back.
 Spams are unsolicited emails, instant messages coming from recipients that are
not granted verifiable permission for the message to be sent. Spam messages can
be damaging if you open or respond to it.
 Cyberstalking refers to the use of the internet or other electronic device to harass
or stalk individuals or organizations.
 Cyberbullying refers to the act of tormenting, harassing, or embarrassing another
person using the internet.
 Spoofing happens when someone or something pretends to be something else to
gain our confidence, get access to our systems, steal data, steal money, or spread
malware.

B. EXERCISES/ ACTIVITY
ACTIVITY 1: Show Me How You Hashtag
Directions: Examine the following images and create a hashtag based on the type of
online threat presented by each image. Write your answers on the ANSWER SHEET.

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 Image source: https://www.avg.com/en/signal/what- Image source: https://itigic.com/tag/adware/
is-spyware 2
1

Image source:https://www.gtmaritime.com/free-
Image source: https://dlpng.com/png/6702600
phishing-penetration-test/

3 4

image source: http://www.upgrademag.com/web/2018/07/18/entry-of-3rd-

C. Assessment/Application/Outputs
ASSESSMENT A
Directions: Read each item carefully and choose the letter of the correct answer. Write
your answer on the ANSWER SHEET.
1. Your family is going out on a vacation. What should you do?
A. Post pictures when you return home.
B. Post the dates you will be gone online.
C. Post updates of where you are currently checking in hotels or places.
D. Tell no one. Vacations are for getting away.
2. Do you have the same passwords for all your accounts?
A. Yes. That is how I remember all my passwords.
B. I have different passwords for all different accounts.

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 C. I keep it simple. I don’t have any passwords.
D. I have two similar passwords that I alternately use for all my accounts.
3. Choose which image below describes how you feel about sharing your password with
your boyfriend/ girlfriend?

A B

C D
Image source: https://www.nku.edu/~rkdrury/experiment/netiquette_quiz.htm

4. Your parents bought you your first cellphone. How will you share your cellphone
number?
A. Do not share your cellphone number to anyone.
B. Post your cellphone number in your social media account.
C. Share your cellphone number only in person.
D. Post your cellphone number in your group chat.
5. Your social media friends list should only be composed of ______________.
A. Your favorite brands. C. Anyone who sends you a friend request
B. Family and friends D. Foreigners

6. What type of malicious program is designed to replicate itself and transfer from one
computer to another either through the internet or local networks or data storage like
flash drives and CDs?
A)Adware B)Worms and Virus C)Spyware D)Ransomeware

7. What harmful online programs are designed to send you advertisements, mostly pop-
up ads?
A)Adware B)Worms and Virus C)Spyware D)Ransomeware

8. What harmful online program is used to record keystrokes done by users to steal
passwords?
A)Adware B)Worms and Virus C)Spyware D)Ransomeware

9. What is ransomware based on?

A. Fear of hackers C. Fear of spyware
B. Fear of the Internet D. Fear of losing important files

10. What is considered shouting over the Internet?

A. Screaming at your computer.
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 B. Writing in all CAPS.
C. Putting a lot of exclamation marks at the end of a sentence.
D. Not answering a friend request on Facebook.

PERFORMANCE
Directions: Based on what you have learned about online safety and security as well as
online threats, make a creative poster that gives atleast five (5) tips on how to be safe
online. Write your online safety tips poster on a separate bond paper – A4 in size. You
can put creative designs or background on your outputs. This performance will be rated
based on the rubrics given below.

RUBRICS
Relevance Coherence and Creativity Total
Grammar
4 3 3 10

Sample Output

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