What is a digital footprint?
A digital footprint is the trail of information you leave behind when you use the internet. Every post, photo, comment, like, search and video watched adds to it. So does information about you that other people share, such as a photo a friend posts with your name on it.
For children, the picture that works best is a beach. Every step leaves a footprint in the sand. On a beach the tide comes in and washes them away. Online, there is no tide.
What is an active and a passive footprint?
There are two kinds, and children usually only know about the first.
- Active footprint: what you choose to share. A photo of your new bike, a comment on a video, your username in a game, a review you write.
- Passive footprint: what is collected about you without you posting anything. Where your phone has been, what you search for, which videos you watch to the end, how long you look at each post.
The passive one is the bigger surprise for most children. It is also the reason a feed seems to know exactly what they like.
Why does a digital footprint matter for children?
Because it lasts, it travels and it adds up.
A photo shared with five friends can be screenshotted and shared with five hundred. A username used in every game can link a child's accounts together. Small details, such as a school jumper in a photo, a street sign in the background, or a birthday in a bio, can be put together by a stranger into a surprisingly full picture.
None of this means children should be frightened of the internet. It means the details they share are worth a second's thought.
How can children keep their digital footprint small?
A few habits do most of the work:
- Think before you post. Would I be happy for my teacher, my gran and a stranger to see this?
- Keep the private things private: full name, school, address, phone number and passwords.
- Use a nickname in games and apps rather than a real name.
- Ask before posting other people, and expect them to ask you.
- Check privacy settings with a grown-up on every new app.
In our story My Name Is Mine, five-year-old Ash nearly tells a talking screen his name before stopping to ask why a screen would want it. That question, why does this want my information, works at any age.
How are children's footprints protected by law?
In the UK, online services likely to be used by children must follow the Information Commissioner's Office's Children's code, which sets out 15 standards, including privacy settings that are high by default. In the US, the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act puts rules on collecting data from children under 13.
Laws help, but they cannot stop a child posting something they later regret. That part is down to habits.
Try this at home or in class
Search for your own name together, then talk about what turns up and how it got there. Then ask your child to imagine a stranger finding their accounts: what could that person work out? Our free Keep It Private poster is a handy reminder to stick by the family computer.
Frequently asked questions
What is a digital footprint in simple words?
Everything that is online about you, or that you have done online. Like footprints in sand, you leave some on purpose and some without noticing, but unlike sand, the tide does not wash them away.
What is the difference between an active and a passive digital footprint?
An active footprint is what you choose to share, such as posts, photos and comments. A passive footprint is what is collected about you, such as your location, searches and what you watch.
Can you delete your digital footprint?
You can delete a lot of it, and you should know how. But anything already copied, screenshotted or shared by someone else may stay online, which is why thinking first matters more than deleting later.
How are children's digital footprints protected?
In the UK, online services likely to be used by children must follow the ICO's Children's code, which sets 15 standards, including high privacy settings by default. Settings help, but habits matter more.