How much time did you spend online today?  What did you do?  Who did you contact on MySpace, or Bebo, or ...?  Who were they REALLY?  Ever suffered cyberbullying?

We have fun online, meet new friends, share pictures and stories about ourselves and install new gadgets. And we take risks.

Look what happens to real people - and can happen to you:

Identity theft - thieves can steal your personal information from you or your PC, Even your name and address can be used to purchase things in your name or even steal your identity in the real world.

Loss of data - you loose your photos or lose your homework or your PC slows to a crawl because your PC is infected with spyware and viruses.

Surpassing download limit - You get a $500 ISP bill because somebody intercepts your wireless connection to do a big video download and goes way past your monthly download limit.

Fortunately, there are some simple measures you can take to improve the security of your computer, yourself and your family while you are online. There are some things you need to have and some things you need to do.

Go to the Australian Government's website www.staysmartonline.gov.au for step by step information on e-security, or POST YOUR QUESTION HERE - and we will find an expert in the area and get back to you with an answer.

This forum is part of the National e-Security Awareness Week.

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RELEVANT CONTENT:

• Malcolm Crompton's Privacy Blog
• Why we're teaching kids to teach their parents (by Mark McPherson, Sophos)
• Keeping our kids safer online (by Dr Martyn Wild, Intuitive Media, Telstra)
• Let kids ‘skin their knees' to beat Cyberbullying (by Jody Melbourne)
• A shift in thinking (by Julie Inman-Grant, Microsoft)
• e-Bay offers 5 quick ways to stop online criminals in their tracks