The4 Rs: RESPONSIBILITY

“I am accountable for my actions and I take a stand when I feel something is wrong.”

• There is a lot that goes into being responsible online. It means protecting privacy, knowing your rights and responsibilities, thinking about the impact of online actions, and staying within the law.  
• Internet-users need to be responsible for their online actions
• If you are experiencing harassment online, either block or report the user.
• If someone sends you a link that seems unusual, it is your responsibility to not click on it and investigate further.

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The 4Rs: REASONING

“I question what is real.”

• It is often quite difficult to discern what information is true or false. It is very important that people question the validity of information posed to them particularly via the internet.Internet users need to cultivate critical reasoning skills so they more likely to have positive and safe experiences online.
• This is particularly relevant in terms of scams. Criminals are constantly adjusting their methods in order to trick internet users into falling for their scams. By having the skills to critically reason with information posed by scammers, people are less likely to be impacted by scams.
• “Scammers can use tactics to convince you that they are legitimately from an organisation that you know. It can often be very difficult to tell the real from the not real.Never respond directly to a message that indicates there is a security threat, or requesting something from you. The best way to make sure you’re dealing with a legitimate organisation is to contact that organisation yourself through their website, or log into your account through a search engine. Never click on any links or open attachments in a message until you’ve done your research.”Christine IDCARE

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The4Rs: RESILIENCE

“I get back up from tough situations.”

• Internet use opens up the possibility of danger and harm. Often, people do become affected by negative events online, and to recover from these, resilience is important. People need to learn solution-focused coping strategies to ensure they can recover from harmful situations.
• Resilience is the ability to adapt and survive in a changing environment by implementing effective safety measures around online activity. Individuals must have the skills to efficiently prepare for, respond to and recover from online attacks in order to have online resilience.
• “It is better to be preventative than reactive. If you know how to safeguard your personal information, even if a scammer does try to target you, they are less likely to be successful.” Christine IDCARE
• “Many people really struggle after having experienced a scam, but gaining knowledge after an event will help build a stronger defence against future attempts to scam.Acknowledging that you now have a new skill set from the event will help build resilience.” Christine IDCARE

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