Threat Profile: Family and Children
As a parent you want to protect your children online without undermining their autonomy. As a teenager you're building your digital identity for the first time. Two perspectives, one goal: safe and aware online.
Threat Profile: Family and Children
This profile has two perspectives:
As a parent — how do you protect children online without damaging their trust or hindering their digital development?
As a teenager — how do you build a healthy digital foundation, in an environment where friends, schools, and platforms all want something from you?
For parents
Threat analysis
The threats for children online differ from those for adults:
Commercial — Platforms are designed to keep young people engaged as long as possible. Algorithms optimize for engagement, not wellbeing. Data collected about your child now will persist for years.
Social — Bullying, exclusion, and screenshots circulating within a school group. The social pressure to use certain apps is enormous.
Contact from strangers — Grooming via games, Discord, Instagram DMs. Perpetrators rarely present themselves as strangers — they build trust over months.
Own content — Photos or messages a child shares themselves can come back later. What’s funny today can be problematic in five years.
The monitoring dilemma
Parental controls (Screen Time, Family Link) are themselves a form of surveillance. Sometimes necessary — but also something to be honest about:
- Trust works better than control in the long run — children who learn to think critically about what they do online are better protected than children who are only restricted
- Transparency — if you use monitoring software, explain to your child why
- Age-dependent — an 8-year-old and a 16-year-old deserve fundamentally different approaches
Checklist for parents
Devices and accounts
- Family accounts for streaming and gaming — don’t share your own account
- Separate Google or Apple account for each child — no shared accounts
- Family password manager (Bitwarden has a free family option) — good opportunity to teach children password hygiene
- Review which apps are on children’s devices — especially at younger ages
Platforms
- Check and explain privacy settings on social media
- TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat: defaults are almost always set to public
- Disable location sharing in apps — especially for younger children
- Gaming: Fortnite, Roblox, and Minecraft have chat features — know what your child encounters there
The conversation
- Discuss what grooming is in an age-appropriate way
- Make clear: if someone asks them to keep something secret from you, that’s a reason to tell you
- Discuss screenshots and the permanent nature of digital content
- Teach children: if something online doesn’t feel right, it’s always okay to stop and leave
For teenagers
Your threat model
Most threats for teenagers don’t come from governments or hackers — they come from:
- Peers — screenshots circulating, group chats, gossip based on private messages
- Platforms — designed to hold your attention and collect your data
- Strangers online — not everyone is who they say they are
Build a healthy foundation
Passwords A password manager is the most useful thing you can install. Bitwarden is free, works on everything, and ensures you have a different password everywhere without having to remember them.
Two-factor authentication Enable 2FA on accounts that matter — your email, social media. If someone has your password, they still can’t get in.
Messaging Signal is more secure than WhatsApp. If you’re discussing sensitive things, Signal is a better choice than an app that stores all your metadata.
Social media
- Check who can see your posts — default settings are almost always too open
- Turn off location in messages and photos
- What you post stays. Even if you delete it — someone may have taken a screenshot
School devices Your school laptop or tablet probably has MDM software (Mobile Device Management) that allows the school to see what you do. That’s their right on their device. Use a personal device for private things.
If something goes wrong If someone threatens you online, tries blackmail, or sends inappropriate things: you don’t have to deal with it alone. Tell a trusted adult, or contact a youth helpline in your country — anonymously.
Tools
| Purpose | Tool | For whom |
|---|---|---|
| Password manager | Bitwarden | Whole family |
| Secure messaging | Signal | Everyone |
| Parental controls (Android) | Google Family Link | Parent + child |
| Parental controls (Apple) | Screen Time | Parent + child |
See also:
- Threat Profile: Normal User — foundation for everyone in the family
- Bitwarden Review — password manager for the family
- Signal and Molly Review — secure messaging
- Browser Comparison: Firefox, Brave and Tor — which browser fits which use