Children too need to learn to protect their digital privacy, advises the non-profit MediaSmarts.

Game teaches online privacy to children

A non-profit digital literacy organization has developed a new game to teach children how to protect their privacy in a fun way. Recent news about Facebook has made people aware that their private information is being mined and used extensively for marketing purposes both commercial and political.

MediaSmarts created the game with financial contributions from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.

The game uses a tile-matching format to integrate educational material with fun activities. (MediaSmarts)

Data Defenders, fun and instructive

Called Data Defenders, the game starts by offering players a chance to earn more moves and improve their game score by answering questions about themselves. This is a common tactic of ‘free’ games and services that make money by collecting and selling user data. By providing this information, players lower their hidden privacy scores.

In the second round, players can protect privacy scores by doing quizzes about various privacy tools.

For children, but…

The game is designed for children of about nine to 12 years of age and comes with guides for parents and teachers. The game can be accessed on the MediaSmarts website for free.

Adults who find privacy settings complicated could probably benefit from playing this game too!

Categories: Internet, Science & Technology
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