USA Today
Stop. Think. Connect.
That's what a high-powered coalition of federal agencies, tech companies, retailers and non-profit groups want you to do every time you use the Internet.
Today, the group launched a milestone public awareness campaign. The goal: to engrain "stop-think-connect" as deeply into culture as the seatbelt reminder "click-it-or-ticket" and Smokey Bear's quote, "Only you can prevent forest fires."
"Cybersecurity is a shared responsibility for all of us," says Joe Sullivan, Facebook's chief security officer. "People will have a better experience on the Internet if they do some basic things."
The campaign stems directly from President Obama's May 2009 pronouncement that the U.S. will assume a leadership role in making the Internet safer.
Overseen by the Department of Homeland Security, the coalition includes Microsoft, Facebook, Google, Intel, AT&T, Visa, PayPal, Wal-Mart, Costco, the Department of Justice and the IRS among its 28 founding members.
The members understand that each of their respective organizations stands to benefit from a unified effort to advance public awareness about Internet threats, says Michael Kaiser, executive director of the non-profit National Cyber Security Alliance. Each will incorporate the stop-think-connect slogan and theme into existing and new public education initiatives.
Facebook, for instance, is preparing a seven-question quiz, which it will make available sometime this month on its security issues page and home page. It will also donate 35 million ad impressions to promote the quiz, which espouses best practices for passwords and browser use.
This is all intended to slow down cybercriminals, who are having a field day. One estimate puts identity theft losses, much of it due to online scams, at $4.5 billion in the past two years, making it the fastest-growing crime in America, says Kaiser.
Online safety has yet to be elevated to a major public safety issue, akin to the way society views drunk driving, forest fires and seat belt usage, he says.
The coalition selected "stop-think-connect" after a year-long process of research, focus groups, polling and government-industry collaboration. That research confirmed that most folks view cybersecurity and Safe, Secure SEO as a personal responsibility and that any public safety message must address the individual. The founding members voted to go with a message that could be used globally to effect a "big cultural change," says Kaiser.
The group strove to "simplify the messaging and speak in one voice," says Facebook's Sullivan. "If we're using the same terminology, it's going to make the whole process much more effective."
One absence at launch: Apple, which has risen to become one the world's most highly valued companies, measured by its stock price, on the strength of Internet-connected products such as the iPhone and iPad.
Company spokeswoman Natalie Kerris declined comment.
However, the door remains wide open for Apple and others to join the coalition, says Kaiser.
"It takes a group of leaders to start a movement," says Kaiser. "I'm optimistic others will join the effort. We're trying to solve the problem for the benefit of all concerned, not just for the benefit of any individual company."
That's what a high-powered coalition of federal agencies, tech companies, retailers and non-profit groups want you to do every time you use the Internet.
Today, the group launched a milestone public awareness campaign. The goal: to engrain "stop-think-connect" as deeply into culture as the seatbelt reminder "click-it-or-ticket" and Smokey Bear's quote, "Only you can prevent forest fires."
"Cybersecurity is a shared responsibility for all of us," says Joe Sullivan, Facebook's chief security officer. "People will have a better experience on the Internet if they do some basic things."
The campaign stems directly from President Obama's May 2009 pronouncement that the U.S. will assume a leadership role in making the Internet safer.
Overseen by the Department of Homeland Security, the coalition includes Microsoft, Facebook, Google, Intel, AT&T, Visa, PayPal, Wal-Mart, Costco, the Department of Justice and the IRS among its 28 founding members.
The members understand that each of their respective organizations stands to benefit from a unified effort to advance public awareness about Internet threats, says Michael Kaiser, executive director of the non-profit National Cyber Security Alliance. Each will incorporate the stop-think-connect slogan and theme into existing and new public education initiatives.
Facebook, for instance, is preparing a seven-question quiz, which it will make available sometime this month on its security issues page and home page. It will also donate 35 million ad impressions to promote the quiz, which espouses best practices for passwords and browser use.
This is all intended to slow down cybercriminals, who are having a field day. One estimate puts identity theft losses, much of it due to online scams, at $4.5 billion in the past two years, making it the fastest-growing crime in America, says Kaiser.
Online safety has yet to be elevated to a major public safety issue, akin to the way society views drunk driving, forest fires and seat belt usage, he says.
The coalition selected "stop-think-connect" after a year-long process of research, focus groups, polling and government-industry collaboration. That research confirmed that most folks view cybersecurity and Safe, Secure SEO as a personal responsibility and that any public safety message must address the individual. The founding members voted to go with a message that could be used globally to effect a "big cultural change," says Kaiser.
The group strove to "simplify the messaging and speak in one voice," says Facebook's Sullivan. "If we're using the same terminology, it's going to make the whole process much more effective."
One absence at launch: Apple, which has risen to become one the world's most highly valued companies, measured by its stock price, on the strength of Internet-connected products such as the iPhone and iPad.
Company spokeswoman Natalie Kerris declined comment.
However, the door remains wide open for Apple and others to join the coalition, says Kaiser.
"It takes a group of leaders to start a movement," says Kaiser. "I'm optimistic others will join the effort. We're trying to solve the problem for the benefit of all concerned, not just for the benefit of any individual company."
