This document discusses digital footprints and how to manage them safely. It begins by explaining that a digital footprint is the trail of information someone leaves behind online through activities like social media posts, searches, and comments. It notes that this information can affect people's lives and be seen by potential employers or universities. The document then provides strategies for keeping a digital footprint safe, such as thinking before posting, avoiding oversharing personal details, and considering how comfortable others might be with certain posts. It emphasizes that information online can have long-term effects and impact people's futures. The key message is that people should be aware of their digital footprints and post appropriately to avoid potential risks.

1. MY DIGITAL FOOTPRINT

2. WHAT IS A DIGITAL FOOTPRINT?
Each time you log onto social media, you leave a trail behind you, mostly based on
what you search up, whose pictures you like, what you comment on your friends’
posts, etc.You may not know its there, but what you do or say online is permanent
and accessible to anyone with internet access with just a click of a button.These
tracks help companies and universities find out more about you, whether or not to
hire or accept you. Sometimes our digital footprints can affect our lives, even if
they seem harmless to you.
In this PowerPoint, I will show you how these footprints can affect your future, how
to keep them appropriate, and what information to pass onto others.

3. WHEN I GOOGLE MYSELF…
The other day in class we had an
assignment which asked me to google
myself and then explain what I saw. Though
I’ve already done this many times before, I
was still very surprised by what I had seen.
All my social media sites were listed on the
page, such as Instagram, Twitter and even
YouTube which I barely use! I saw pictures
I had posted from 2-3 years ago in Images
and even pictures of friends I haven’t
spoken to in ages! You could see
everything I had posted in the past, but
then deleted. It really surprised me, as

4. HOW WILL MY DIGITAL
FOOTPRINT AFFECT MY FUTURE?
Here are a few examples:
•When companies or universities decide they want to hire or accept you, some of them like to dig
really deep into your past to make sure you're perfect for them. For example, if a criminal decides
they want to work for a company, the employers would probably want to see that persons’ record to
make sure they aren’t a threat to anyone. Same goes for social media, you might’ve sent a tweet a
few years ago insulting the company or a person who works there, well even if its buried under the
hundreds of your other tweets, its still there for someone who’s trying to find it.
•Another way the footprints can affect your life is if you’re putting all your information online, your
birthday, address, phone number, etc, someone can easily take your identity or come over, trying to
hurt you.You never know what kind of people can be out there!

5. HOW CAN I KEEP MY DIGITAL
FOOTPRINT SAFE?
•Strategy #1:Think before you post. Before putting something out online for
everyone to see, make sure its appropriate. Ask yourself, will I hurt others with this
post?
•Strategy #2: Don’t post about every aspect of your life. Make sure you aren’t
tweeting or posting about everywhere you go, where you live, when you will be at
the place you’re meeting some friend. As fun as it is to tell your friends about the
great parts of your life, its unnecessary to tell everyone about everything.
•Strategy #3: Pretend you aren’t the one posting online.Take a moment and think,
if you were in someone else's shoes, would you be comfortable with this being
online? If no, maybe the better choice is to not publish this on the internet for
everyone to see.

6. WHAT I LEARNED…
During the past few days of watching digital footprint videos and reading articles online, I
learned that the internet can actually be really scary. My parents and past teachers have
already warned me about the dangers of social media so I wasn’t as surprised as a lot of
people I know, but it still made me think a bit about how I can change what I post and like
online. I learned that once searching something up on the internet, there's an invisible file
in your device that tracks what you type and then bases their advertisements on that
information. For example, if you only ever google things about soccer, you will then start to
see the ads in your emails and your social media accounts asking you to buy their soccer
stuff. I also found out that every detail I put out online about myself, even after deleted, it is
still possible to find. All the pieces of information on my parents’ social media accounts will
also stick with me as I grow older, from sharing the date of my birth, to when I graduate
and get married! Everyday kids are sharing things about themselves and creating accounts
at young ages, they might not think it’s a big deal about what they post then, but by the
time they learn about the risks, it will have already affected their future in some way.

7. WHAT CAN I TELL OTHERS ABOUT
THIS DIGITAL FOOTPRINT?
If I were to tell others about
the digital footprint, I would
just tell them to be aware of
what they post! I would
explain all the risks there are
to having their social media
accounts especially at a
young age, not to share
personal information about
themselves, and to listen to
teachers when they say it’s
dangerous.

8. Thanks for
watching!