New school year, new digital risks: How UAE parents can spot scams, deepfakes and cyberbullying
We didn’t use AI , in our days. We were just wrong, confident and proud. Why not? Without AI, our own imagination could convince us that Enid Blyton wrote Great Expectations , until the teacher would give us a verbal rap on our knuckles and we were humbled into rewrites. (Charles Dickens wrote Great Expectations, five times on the page, if you please). Millennial parents are currently in ‘in our…
As the new school year begins, parents in the UAE face the challenge of safeguarding their children from digital risks. These risks include online scams, deepfakes, and cyberbullying that have become more sophisticated due to advancements in artificial intelligence (AI). Experts warn that children's online behavior is increasingly influenced by AI applications and services, making it crucial for parents to educate their children about the information they share and trust online.
Mohammed AbuKhater, Vice President and Managing Director for F5 Middle East, Türkiye and Africa, advises that the biggest threat these days is psychological manipulation. Phishing and social engineering attacks have become highly convincing because scammers use personal information shared online to make their traps appear genuine. Children's school names, uniforms, locations, hobbies, and friendships can all be exposed online, making them particularly vulnerable to these attacks.
Online threats have become far more complicated, with attackers using AI-generated voice and video to impersonate classmates, teachers, or school administrators. Credential phishing campaigns now target school portal logins, which can provide access to the school's broader infrastructure. Additionally, data brokers expose children's personal data, such as full names, school names, and locations, through breached EdTech platforms and poorly secured school apps.
Even innocent back-to-school photos can inadvertently reveal sensitive information like school names and uniforms. To mitigate these risks, parents should ensure all operating systems, apps, browsers, and software are fully updated. They should also review installed apps, remove unfamiliar or unnecessary ones, check privacy settings, and delete unnecessary apps.
Furthermore, parents should verify the lock screen, app permissions, and signed-in accounts, especially on school devices, to prevent unauthorized access to personal information.
Written by urgent.news from Gulf News's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
