Technology can sometimes be complicated, but you shouldn’t have to be a computer scientist or security expert to stay safe online. Protecting our users is one of our top priorities at Google. Whether it’s creating easy-to-use tools to help you manage your information online or fighting the bad guys behind the scenes, we’re constantly investing to make Google the best service you can rely on, with security and privacy features that are on 24-7 and working for you.
Last year, we launched Good to Know, our biggest-ever consumer education campaign focused on making the web a safer, more comfortable place. Today, on Safer Internet Day, we’re updating Good to Know to include more tips and advice to help you protect yourself and your family from identity theft, scams and online fraud. You can also learn how to make your computer or mobile device more secure, and get more out of the web—from searching more effectively to making calls from your computer. And you can find out more about how Google works to make you, your device and the whole web safer.
For example, we encrypt the Gmail and Google Search traffic between your computer and Google - this protects your Google activity from being snooped on by others. We also make this protection, known as session-wide SSL encryption, the default when you’re signed into Google Drive. Because outdated software makes your computer more vulnerable to security problems, we built the Chrome browser to auto-update to the latest version every time you start it. It gives you up-to-date security protection without making you do any extra work.
We know staying safe online is important to you - and it is important to us too. So on Safer Internet Day, we’re participating in events in countries across Europe including: one hundred simultaneous online safety workshops with the Italian Postal Police ; a Hangout between parliamentarian Trine Bramsen and 80 school kids from a primary school in Højby, Denmark; and a debate about inappropriate content online in Germany, with politicians from the Brandenburg state government and civil society groups. There, we'll be talking about our YouTube 361 campaign to encourage tolerance and respect online:
And in Brussels, we’ll be launching of a new educational handbook for 13-16 year-olds that we have helped develop in collaboration with InSafe , INHOPE , the European Commission , Liberty Global and European Schoolnet (the network of thirty Ministries of Education). The booklet, which will be available in multiple languages, has been extensively tested with young people across Europe, and will guide classroom discussions on digital footprints, reputation, rights and responsibilities online.
We've also been a part of Commissioner Neelie Kroes' Better Internet for Kids initiative, and now support - amongst other commitments - new ways to report harmful content online, including Second Friend and Net Ecoute .
Please find some time today to talk with friends and family about Internet safety. Take affirmative action by making your passwords stronger and turning on 2-step verification to protect your Google Account. And please also visit our new Good to Know site to find more tips and resources to help you stay safe online.
Posted by Alma Whitten, Director of Privacy, Product and Engineering
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