🎯 What you will learn
- By the end of this lesson you'll know what a digital footprint is and why it lasts so long.
- You'll be able to tell which personal details shouldn't be shared publicly.
- You'll understand how photos can give away your location and hidden data (metadata).
- You'll know how to check app permissions and privacy settings.
- You'll learn to think before you post.
What is a digital footprint?
Your digital footprint is all the traces you leave behind online: posts, comments, likes, photos, videos, searches, the games you play and the websites you visit. There are two kinds:
- Active footprint – what you share on purpose: a photo on Instagram, a comment on YouTube, a video on TikTok.
- Passive footprint – what gets collected without you noticing: your phone's location, your browsing history, how long you watch a video, who you talk to. Apps and advertisers use this to build up a “profile” of you.
A digital footprint is like footprints in wet cement: once the cement sets, they're very hard to get rid of.
The internet doesn't forget
Even when you delete a post, someone else may already have saved it: with a screenshot, by downloading it, in internet archives or in other copies. “Disappearing” messages (like the ones on Snapchat) can be photographed with another phone.
- Schools, universities and employers sometimes look up applicants' names online.
- A joke today might look very different in five years' time.
- Anything you send to a group chat can be shared outside the group.
Details to keep to yourself
Some details can be used to find you, to pretend to be you or to trick you. Don't share them publicly:
| Detail | Why it's risky |
|---|---|
| Your home address, school name, class | Someone could find you in person. |
| Your phone number and personal email | Spam, scams, harassment. |
| Your full date of birth | Used for identity theft and to guess passwords. |
| Photos of documents (ID card, passport, bank card) | They could be used to set up fake accounts in your name. |
| Your daily routine, “we're on holiday” | Shows when your home is empty or where you are. |
| Passwords and codes | They give full access to your accounts. |
Watch out for details in the background too: a street name, a car's number plate, your school uniform or the view from your window can give away more than you think.
Photos say more than you think: location and metadata
When you take a photo with your phone, it often stores hidden data (metadata, EXIF) inside the file: the date, the time, the phone model and – if location is switched on – the GPS coordinates of the place where the photo was taken.
- Most big social media platforms remove this data when you post a photo, but when you send it as a file (by email, in some chat apps, or as a “document”), it may stay in.
- On an iPhone, when you share a photo, tap Options and turn off Location. On Android, you can turn off location saving (“Location tags”) in the camera app.
- Be careful with location tags (check-ins) and with sharing your “live” location on app maps such as Snap Map – share it only with your family, or switch on “Ghost Mode”.
- Post holiday photos after you get back home, not while you're away.
App permissions and privacy settings
Lots of apps ask for more permissions than they actually need. Why would a puzzle game need access to your contacts or your microphone?
- Open Settings → Privacy (iPhone) or Settings → Apps → Permissions (Android).
- Check which apps can access your location, camera, microphone, contacts and photos.
- Choose “While using the app” for location, or “Never” if it isn't needed.
- For photos, give access only to selected photos, not your whole gallery.
- Delete apps you no longer use.
On social media, set your account to private and check who can tag you, send you messages and see your friends list. Search for your own name in a search engine to see what other people can see.
Respect other people's privacy too
Privacy isn't only about you. When you post photos or videos of your friends, teachers or relatives, you're sharing their information too.
- Ask before you post photos that show other people.
- Don't film anyone without them knowing, especially in embarrassing situations.
- Don't share someone else's private messages without their permission.
- If someone asks you to take down a photo, take it down.
In Kosovo, as in the EU, personal data is protected by law, and publishing someone's photos or personal details without their permission can also have legal consequences.
📖 A real-life story
Leonora, 13, from Peja, posted stories every day showing her school uniform and the bus stop where she waited. Her account was public. One day, an account she didn't know messaged her: “I know you finish school at 1:30 pm. I'll be waiting for you at the bus stop.”
Leonora was frightened and told her parents straight away. They saved the message with a screenshot, blocked and reported the account, and let the school know. The case was also reported to the Kosovo Police. Afterwards, Leonora made her account private and deleted the posts showing her uniform and the bus stop. Now she only posts photos after she has left a place – and never gives away times.
✅ Do / Don't
✅ Do this
- Set your social media accounts to private.
- Think before you post – use the “grandma test”.
- Turn off location in your camera and when you share photos.
- Check your app permissions every few months.
- Post holiday photos after you get back.
- Ask your friends before you post photos of them.
- Search for your name online to see what's publicly visible.
- Use a username that doesn't give away your full name or age.
❌ Don't do this
- Don't post your address, school, class or daily routine.
- Don't share photos of your ID card, passport or bank cards.
- Don't share your “live” location with people you don't know in person.
- Don't believe that “disappearing” messages really disappear.
- Don't give apps permissions they don't need.
- Don't post anything when you're angry or upset.
- Don't share other people's photos or messages without permission.
👨👩👧 For parents and teachers
Parents create a digital footprint for their children too – often before the child even has a phone. Bear this in mind when you post photos of your children.
- Go through the privacy settings of every app your child uses, together.
- Search for your child's name online together and talk about what you find.
- Avoid posting photos that show the name of the school, your address or your child in embarrassing situations; ask older children whether they're happy for you to post.
- Check how location sharing is set up in your family: it should be with family only, not with “friends” in apps.
- Teachers can try this exercise: “What could a stranger find out from this made-up profile?”
🧠 Mini-quiz
Answer 3 questions. Get at least 2 right and the lesson is marked as completed in your passport.