“Get ready with me” videos have become one of the most popular formats among children and teenagers, turning everyday routines into shareable content. From preparing for school in the morning to showing skincare routines or favorite products, such videos may seem harmless — but they can unintentionally reveal details about a child’s life that contribute to their digital footprint. Kaspersky experts explain how everyday content can expose more information than expected and what families can do to help children manage their online privacy.
For many children and teenagers, creating content is now a natural part of their online communication. A “Get ready with me for school” video may simply show a morning routine, such as choosing an outfit, packing a school bag, applying skincare products or talking about plans for the day. However, a single video can contain many small details that, when combined, create a much more complete picture of a child’s identity and daily life.
A school uniform, a logo on a backpack, a view from a window, a street visible in the background, a friend mentioned in conversation or a comment about a regular schedule may each seem insignificant on their own. But together, these details can reveal information about where a child studies, where they spend time, who they communicate with and what their daily routine looks like.
This is an example of a modern form of oversharing. Whilst children do not necessarily publish their address or phone number directly, they instead leave behind small pieces of information that can be combined to expand their digital footprint.
Why does a digital footprint matter?
A digital footprint includes all information a person leaves online through their posts, comments, profiles, messages, location data and more.
Once information becomes publicly available, users often lose control over how it may be reused. A photo posted for friends can be copied, reposted or combined with other publicly available information, whilst a username can lead someone to another platform and an old account can reveal details that a child no longer remembers sharing.
For cybercriminals, these details can become valuable. Information collected from public profiles can help attackers create more convincing phishing messages, impersonate someone the child knows or build fake profiles. Even small details — a favorite hobby, school name or upcoming plans — can help make a fraudulent message appear more believable.
How can families help children protect their digital footprint?
- Learn to look at content from an outsider’s perspective
Before publishing a video, children can ask themselves not only “Do I like this content?” but also “What can someone who does not know me understand from it?”. A routine video rarely contains one obvious piece of sensitive information, instead, it may include many small details: a familiar street in the background, a daily schedule mentioned in conversation or a friend’s name appearing in the video.
Developing the habit of reviewing content before publication helps children understand that their digital footprint is created not only by what they share, but also by the context surrounding it. Educational resources such as the Kaspersky Cyberhygiene course help develop practical digital safety skills, including protecting personal information, recognizing suspicious behavior and making more informed decisions online.
- Regularly check your digital footprint
Children and parents can periodically search what information about them is already publicly available online. This can include checking names, nicknames, email addresses and social media profiles, as well as reviewing old accounts that may no longer be used.
This practice can help families identify outdated information, forgotten profiles or accounts created years ago that still contribute to a child’s digital footprint. Completely removing a digital footprint is impossible, but it can be reduced and managed over time. For younger users, this can become a simple digital habit: understanding what information about them exists online and why it matters. Also they should get acquainted with the term “digital footprint” – looking at the Kaspersky Cybersecurity Alphabet could help with this, introducing basic cybersecurity concepts, cyberhygiene rules and safe online habits in an accessible format.
- Share less personal information than platforms ask for
Many online services encourage users to provide more information than is necessary. Children and teenagers may not always think about why an app requests access to their location, contacts, photos or other personal data.
Families can discuss an important question before filling out forms, creating profiles or enabling permissions: “Do I really need to share this information to use the service?” Reducing unnecessary data sharing helps limit the amount of information available about a child and decreases potential risks if an account or service is compromised.
- Review privacy settings regularly
Privacy settings are not something that should be adjusted only once when an account is created. Platforms frequently change their features and default settings, while children may join new services or become more active online over time.
Families can regularly review who can see posts, who can contact the child and what information is visible on their profiles. Kaspersky Privacy Checker can help users better understand available privacy options across popular platforms and services and adjust them according to their preferences, while solutions such as Kaspersky Premium help protect family devices from online threats, including phishing attempts, malicious files and other cyber risks that can compromise personal information.
At the same time, Kaspersky Safe Kids helps parents create a safer online environment by managing screen time, filtering inappropriate content, supporting Safe Search and providing location-sharing features, while encouraging open conversations about children’s digital activities.
- Remove what no longer represents you
As children grow, their interests, communities and online habits change. Old profiles, abandoned accounts, outdated posts and unused subscriptions can remain part of their digital footprint long after they stop using them. Regularly cleaning up old digital traces helps children understand that their online presence is something they can manage and shape over time.
“Children today do not always choose when they become visible online. A video created for a small audience can suddenly reach thousands of people. That is why online safety education needs to go beyond the traditional advice of ‘think before you post’. Children also need to understand how to manage their digital footprint, protect their privacy and respond when their online visibility grows unexpectedly,” comments Andrey Sidenko, Cyber Literacy Projects Lead at Kaspersky.