Private Personal Information (PPI)

Private Personal information is any piece of information that tells someone:

• who you are
• where you are
• Or how to contact your child

PPI is any information that can be used to identify you, such as your street address, email, date of birth, phone number or certain personal interests. It can play an important role in how effectively scammers and predators are able to manipulate people.

It’s important to discuss protecting private personal information online so young people can protect themselves from being manipulated by:

• Strangers – People they don’t know
• Hackers – People who are trying to gain access to accounts
• Trolls – People who tease or harass others online
• Identity thieves – People who want to steal information and impersonate others for personal gain

Reviewing the previous scenarios, what PPI was shared that helped the scammer and predator facilitate relationships with the young people?

• Cassie – Justin Bieber posts and comparisons. Local school links and age. Nude image.
• Jonah shares a lot of information about personal interests and family issues with Asher, who used it to turn Jonah against his family. They also share a phone number for Asher to contact them at night.

Catfish scammers

• Liam pretended to be romantically interested in Cassie and constantly complimented her which made her feel good. Eventually coerced her into sending nudes
• Liam manipulated Cassie into believing they were in a relationship and that they had a future together

Grooming and online predators

• Ash befriended Jonah using his interest in games and dragons
• Ash gained PPI information about Jonah’s family and used it against them

Both scenarios demonstrate how scammers or predators operate by forming tight bonds, isolating young people from other support mechanisms (like family or long term friends) and creating a common ground with their target/victim.

Finally, always reinforce that real world relationships must always be stronger than online ones.

Nothing can ever replace real world relationships especially for young people. Social support is a strong protective factor when it comes to online safety. Perceived emotional support has been shown to protect against stressful life events that can also be linked to or cause mental health concerns, some of which may be caused or started by negative online events. Social isolation has also been associated with the risk of depression in later life, so while online relationships are important, real life connection and support must always be stronger.

Young people need a balanced approach between online and offline relationships. The takeaway? Time spent maintaining online friendships should never come at the expense of your real-life interactions.