Dashlane Back to School Internet Security Roundup; Hidden Dangers Lurk on Top Websites

NEW YORK, Aug. 27, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- To help parents and teachers keep kids safe as they head back to school, Dashlane examined 25 of the most popular sites and apps visited by kids to determine the potential privacy and security risks they pose for child users.

The Dashlane team spent five weeks testing 28 criteria; 18 Dashlane identified as critical to password security, and 10 identified as critical to child security and privacy. Each criterion was assigned a point value, with the Password Security and Kid-Friendly sections each totaling 50 points, leading to a possible overall score between 0 and 100.

Only five sites attained a passing score: Apple, Gmail, Google+, Hotmail, and Skype.

The Security Roundup is supported by a 6,000-word security and privacy guide that provides parents and teachers with "Driver's Education for the Digital World"; a comprehensive set of actionable tips to keep their child safe online.  

The full roundup results and guide can be accessed on Dashlane's Security Roundup page:
www.dashlane.com/internet-security-roundup/school

Dangers Lurk on Top Websites:

• Only 12 sites received passing scores in the Password Security section, including Gmail, Tumblr, YouTube, and Snapchat. Sites receiving the lowest scores included Instagram, Vine, and SoundCloud.
• Among the more popular sites to receive failing grades in the Password Security section were Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Reddit. These sites had subpar password security practices, including having short minimum required password lengths and letting users select commonly used passwords.
• The results in the Kid-Friendly section were worse as Netflix was the only site to receive a passing score. In fact, all but three sites received scores at or below 16.

Emmanuel Schalit, CEO, Dashlane, states:

As a parent, I'm concerned about the digital world my son will experience at school as new classmates expose him to new websites and apps. We can't continually monitor our children's online activities, so the best thing we can do is talk to them about online security and privacy. Dashlane's Internet Security Roundup is the perfect tool for parents and teachers to get comprehensive information about the risks that exist online. This "Driver's Education for the Digital World" will enable them to better equip their children to handle the dangers of the digital world.

Full Results + Methodology

Dashlane conducted the study from July 27 – August 26, 2015. Dashlane examined 25 popular websites and apps. The sites and apps were analyzed based on a set of 28 criteria. Each criterion was assigned a point value, giving each site or app a total possible Dashlane Security Score between 0 - 100. 4 of the 25 tested sites did not require a password to create an account. These sites were not docked points and were given N/A for the Password Security section. The score they were given in the Kid-Friendly section was doubled to produce a final score adjusted to account for the 100-point scale.

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SOURCE Dashlane