FAQ

Don't reply in anger, and don't delete the conversation straight away — take screenshots so you have evidence. Then block the person and report them in the app. Tell an adult you trust: a parent, a teacher or the school counsellor. It's not your fault, and you don't have to deal with it on your own. You'll find more advice in Help.

No. Even best friends sometimes fall out, or tell someone else without meaning to. A password is like a toothbrush: it's just for you. The only exception is your parents or carers, especially while you're young. If you've already told someone, change it today.

Use a passphrase: 3–4 random words that have nothing to do with each other, e.g. Penguin-Moon-Bicycle-Tea (but don't use this exact example!). The longer it is, the stronger it is — aim for at least 12–15 characters. Don't use your name, date of birth or favourite team, and don't reuse the same password on different accounts. Try out an example in the Password checker and learn more in the Academy.

This is a warning sign. People online aren't always who they say they are — a “12-year-old” could be an adult. When someone asks you for photos, personal details or secrets, or wants you to move to a private app, stop the conversation, don't send anything and tell an adult straight away. Block the profile and report it in the game.

It's almost always a scam. If you didn't enter a giveaway, you can't have won. Scammers want you to click the link, hand over your details or pay for “delivery”. Don't click — close it and tell someone. See more examples in Common scams and practise in Spot the scam.

No. Game currency can only be got inside the game or with official gift cards. Websites and videos promising “free Robux” want your password, want you to install a harmful program, or want you to complete “verifications” that collect your data. Lots of children have lost their account and all their items this way. Remember: nobody gives you something that costs money for free.

When you post photos with a location or turn on location sharing in apps (e.g. Snap Map), strangers can find out where you live, which school you go to and when you're on your own. Only share your location with your family. Turn off location in your camera — in Devices you can see how to do it on your phone. Post holiday photos once you're back home.

Delete it as quickly as you can — the less time it stays up, the fewer people see it. Remember that someone may have taken a screenshot, so if the post hurt someone, say sorry. If someone else has shared it and won't take it down, report it on the platform and ask an adult for help. Next time, before you post, ask yourself: “Would I be happy for my teacher and my gran to see this?”

Stop, and don't share it straight away, especially if it makes you angry or really surprises you. Check who published it, whether well-known sources are reporting it too, and whether there are strange details (hands, blurry text, a voice that doesn't match the lips). Today AI can create very realistic photos and voices, so the source matters more than how it looks. Learn more in the lesson on AI and deepfakes in the Academy.

1. Tell a parent or teacher straight away.
2. If you can still sign in, change your password and turn on two-step verification (2FA).
3. In the security settings, sign out of all other devices.
4. Warn your friends not to click on strange messages coming from your account.
5. If you can't sign in, use the platform's “Forgot password” or “My account has been hacked” option.

You'll find step-by-step instructions in Help.

There's no exact age that suits everyone; what matters more is your child's maturity and why they need a phone. If your child only needs to be able to contact you, many experts advise starting with a basic phone (calls and texts only) and putting off a smartphone until as close to 13 as possible. When you give them one, set clear rules from day one: where it charges at night, how long it's used for and which apps are allowed. Turn on parental controls using the guides in Devices.

The World Health Organization recommends that children under 2 have no sedentary screen time, and that children aged 2–4 have no more than one hour a day — and the less, the better. For older children, what matters more than the number of hours is that screens don't take the place of sleep, physical activity, homework and family time. A practical rule: no screens at mealtimes or in the hour before bed, and no phone in the bedroom at night. Make a family plan together — and set an example yourself.

With young children, it's normal for parents to have full access to the device — and for the child to know this. As they grow up, supervision should gradually move from control to trust: secretly reading a teenager's messages usually damages your relationship and teaches them to hide things better. Agree openly on the rules (e.g. “every now and then we'll look at the settings and contacts together”) and only step in directly when you have serious concerns about their safety. The goal is for your child to come to you of their own accord when something goes wrong.

Start with the free tools that are already on your devices:

• Android: Google Family Link
• iPhone and iPad: Screen Time and Family Sharing
• Windows and Xbox: Microsoft Family Safety
• PlayStation and Nintendo Switch: the console's family settings
• YouTube, TikTok, Instagram: supervised accounts and teen accounts

No tool is perfect, and children often find ways around them, so talking openly remains the main protection. You'll find step-by-step guides in Devices and Apps & age ratings.

Stay calm and thank them for telling you — don't take their phone away as a punishment, because next time they won't tell you. Keep evidence (screenshots showing the date and username), block and report the account on the platform, and don't reply to the bullies. If the bullies are from school, let the class teacher or the school management know. If there are threats, blackmail or intimate content, report it to Kosovo Police on 192. You'll find more steps in Help.

Sextortion is blackmail: someone, often using a fake profile “the same age as your child”, persuades the child to send an intimate photo and then threatens to share it unless they pay or send more. Victims are often teenage boys, and the scammers move very fast, within a few hours. Tell your child now: “If this ever happens to you, I won't be angry — come to me straight away.” If it does happen: don't pay and don't send anything else, keep the evidence without sharing the photos, block and report the account, and report it to Kosovo Police on 192. Your child is the victim, not the one to blame — more in Common scams.

“Free” games make their money from in-game purchases, surprise boxes (loot boxes) and offers that only last a few minutes. To prevent it:

• Don't save your bank card on your child's account or on the console.
• Turn on purchase approval: Ask to Buy on iPhone, approvals in Google Family Link, or spending limits on Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo.
• Require a password for every purchase.
• If you want to give them money for games, use a gift card with a limited value.

If the money has already been spent, contact the store (App Store, Google Play or the console store) as soon as possible — you can often ask for a refund.

• Check the recommended age (PEGI or the store rating), not just the pictures in the ad.
• See whether it has chat with strangers, in-app purchases or ads.
• Read the privacy section in the store (“Data safety” on Google Play, “App Privacy” on the App Store) and the permissions it asks for.
• Play it yourself for 10–15 minutes before your child does.

You'll find descriptions of the apps children use most in Apps & age ratings.

Most big platforms (TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, Discord, WhatsApp) require users to be at least 13 under their terms of use. This age limit is mainly about data protection, not about the platform being suitable for every 13-year-old. If a child lies about their age, they lose the special protections that platforms give teenagers. When they start, create the account together, make it private and turn on family supervision — see Apps & age ratings.

Every photo you post builds your child's “digital footprint” before they're able to decide for themselves. Avoid photos that show the name of their school or your address, photos in the bath or with few clothes on, and real-time locations. Share photos with a small circle (a family group, “close friends”) rather than on public profiles. With older children, ask their permission before you post — this teaches them to respect their own privacy and other people's.

Start with curiosity, not bans: “Show me your favourite game” or “Who do you follow on YouTube?”. Have short, frequent chats — in the car or over dinner — rather than one long “lecture”. Do things together: Games and the Cyber Passport are a good way to start. The most important sentence your child needs to hear: “You can tell me anything, even when you've made a mistake.”

Multiplayer games can be fun and sociable, but chatting with strangers is where most unwanted contact happens. In the game and console settings you can limit chat to friends only, or turn it off completely for young children. Teach your child never to give out their full name, school, photos or password, and to tell you if someone offers them gifts (skins, coins) or asks them to move to another app. Where possible, keep the console or computer in a shared room.

Every topic in the Academy has a short lesson for pupils, and in the Teacher zone you'll find a 45-minute plan for the same topic, with phases, discussion questions, a group activity and a printable worksheet. The games in Games work well as a starter or as a plenary at the end of the lesson, including on a projector for the whole class. No registration is needed, either for you or for your pupils.

No. Most activities can be done with a projector and the teacher's computer, with the class deciding together, or in groups with one device per group. The worksheets are printed, and the safety checklist can also be used on paper. The games open in the browser, with nothing to install.

For ages 6–10, use stories, comparisons with everyday life (a password is like a toothbrush, privacy is like your front door), role-play and simple rules such as “Stop – Think – Ask an adult”. For ages 11–16, work with real cases from the news, debates, analysis of scam messages and specific settings on their own phones. Every plan in the Teacher zone includes suggestions for adapting it by age.

Listen calmly, thank them for trusting you and tell them clearly that it's not their fault. Don't promise to keep it a secret, because you may need to involve their parents, the school counsellor or the school management, in line with the school's procedures. Don't ask to see, copy or keep intimate images of a minor yourself — it's enough to note down the usernames, the dates and what happened. Threats, blackmail or sexual content must be reported to Kosovo Police on 192; if there is immediate danger, call 112. You'll find further guidance in Help.

Yes. The 30-day challenge has a small task for each day that takes no more than 10 minutes. You can start it with your class and spend 3–5 minutes each morning talking about the day's task. Some tasks are done together with parents, so the challenge takes cyber safety into the home too. Progress is saved on each person's own device, with no account needed.

Keep your personal profiles private and don't accept pupils as “friends” on your personal accounts. To communicate with the class and parents, use the school's official channels or groups with clear rules (times, topics, no photos of pupils without permission). Don't post photos of pupils without their parents' consent, and don't share lists of grades or personal data in open groups. Turn on 2FA on your school email and accounts — the 2FA lesson in the Academy applies to adults too.

Yes — completely free, with no ads and no registration. Pupils, parents, teachers and schools are free to use the lessons, games, lesson plans and worksheets.

There are no accounts and you don't need to register. Your progress (completed lessons, game scores, passport, challenge) is stored only in your browser (localStorage), on the device you're using, and is not sent to us. If you clear your browser data or switch to another device, your progress won't show up there. The site uses no cookies, statistics or tracking.

Schools, municipal education directorates and organisations can contact KREN through its contact page: https://kren-ks.eu/contact/. Please include the name of the school, the pupils' ages, whether the training is for pupils, teachers or parents, and a few dates that suit you. In the meantime, you can get started straight away with the ready-made plans in the Teacher zone.

The site was created and is maintained by KREN (Kosovo Research and Education Network) as an open educational resource on cyber safety for children, parents and teachers in Kosovo. The content is updated regularly to keep up with new risks and scams.

Write to us through KREN's contact page: https://kren-ks.eu/contact/. Tell us which page you found the mistake on, or the topic you'd like to see. Every suggestion from pupils, parents and teachers helps us make the site better.