1 - Introduction ~5 mins
Welcome
Today we look closely at three digital safety risks that show up in real Irish life: cyberbullying, identity theft, and the digital age of consent. Knowing what each risk looks like, and exactly who to tell, protects you, the real work and files you are building on your own project, any logins you use on work experience, and the people around you.
By the end of today you will be able to say, in your own words, what cyberbullying and identity theft look like here in Ireland, what it means that the digital age of consent is 16 when an app asks an under-16 for personal details, and who you would actually go to first if something went wrong.
Warm-up
If a friend showed you a nasty screenshot being passed around a group chat, what would you do in the first five minutes: reply, screenshot, tell someone, or something else? Keep your answer in your head. We will return to it.
2 - Key Concepts ~8 mins
These ideas can sound heavy on paper. We will practise them with short scenarios next, and you will leave knowing exactly who you would tell, not just definitions.
Read the four rows with your teacher. Keep them short in your head: what it is, why it matters, one example.
| Concept | Why it matters | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Cyberbullying — repeated, intentional harm using phones, apps, or online platforms (messages, posts, group chats, image sharing, exclusion) | It can follow someone home from school and damage wellbeing, reputation, and the ability to concentrate on work experience or on a piece of work you are being marked on | A classmate's photo is shared in a group chat with cruel captions, then forwarded without consent |
| Identity theft — someone steals or misuses personal details (passwords, PPS-related data, photos, account access) to pretend to be you or open accounts in your name | Compromised logins can lock you out of school email, cloud storage, or a project account and can lead to fraud or harmful posts under your name | A phishing email harvests a password; the attacker changes recovery details and posts as that person |
| Irish digital age of consent (16) — under Irish data-protection rules, the digital age of consent is 16: many apps, sites, and online accounts need a parent or guardian's consent before processing personal data of under-16s | It is a legal safeguard, not a lifestyle rule. It helps you spot when a sign-up is asking younger users for data without proper consent | A 15-year-old is pushed to create a full account with personal data on a service that should require guardian consent in Ireland |
| Support pathway — a named person or service you can contact when something online feels unsafe, abusive, or fraudulent | Help works best when you know where to go before a crisis. Naming the person you would actually tell turns "tell someone" into a concrete next step | Telling your year head the same day, instead of waiting to see whether a group chat calms down on its own |
Irish help you can use
Here are the four routes we are working from today. Your teacher will add the real names and where to find each person, and those will stay on the board while you write later.
- Your class teacher
- Your year head
- Your school's guidance counsellor
- A parent, guardian, or other trusted adult at home
When you write your own notes later, pick the two or three of these you would really use, and make sure your school's guidance counsellor and one trusted adult at home are among them. Write what each person can do for you, not their phone number or email address: your notes file does not need anybody's private contact details.
3 - Scenario Cards: What Would You Do? ~15 mins
Work through each scenario as a class. There is no single marked answer. The point is to weigh the choices, name the risk, and decide what you would actually do next.
For every card: identify the main risk (cyberbullying, identity theft, age-of-consent / data issue, or a mix), choose a response, and be ready to say why.
Interactive activity
4 - Common Issues ~3 mins
Common Issues
| Issue | Solution |
|---|---|
| I am not sure which risk the scenario is mainly about | Ask: is the harm social and repeated (cyberbullying), about stolen or misused identity/access (identity theft), or about under-16 personal data and consent (digital age of consent)? Some situations mix two. |
| I feel like "telling someone" will make it worse | Start with one trusted adult (parent/guardian, teacher, year head, guidance counsellor). You can ask what will happen next before a wider report. Your school's guidance counsellor can also talk to you confidentially before anything else happens. |
| I cannot remember who I should tell | Use the board list: your class teacher, your year head, your school's guidance counsellor, and a trusted adult at home. Pick two or three and note what each can do. |
5 - Independent Practice ~19 mins
Independent Practice
Create and save (follow your platform):
- Word Online: Go to {{code:onedrive.com}}, open {{code:Project_Portfolio}} then {{code:09_specialism/sm4/}}, click {{btn:New}} then {{btn:Word document}}, and rename it to {{code:sm4_digital_safety_notes}}.
- Google Docs: Go to {{code:drive.google.com}}, open {{code:Project_Portfolio}} then {{code:09_specialism/sm4/}}, click {{btn:New}} then {{btn:Google Docs}}, and rename it to {{code:sm4_digital_safety_notes}}.
- First, three risks in my own words — cyberbullying, identity theft, digital age of consent (16)
- Then one warning sign for each risk — what you would notice first
- Then what I would do first — keep evidence, stop engaging, tell a trusted adult or teacher
- Then who I would tell — name the person, what they can do, and where to find them (the routes are on the board)
- Last, one project link — how this protects your own project work or the logins you use on work experience
Optional sentence starters (use if you get stuck; finish in your own words):
- Cyberbullying is when…
- A first warning sign of identity theft could be…
- Ireland's digital age of consent is 16, which means…
- First I would…
- The first person I would tell is… and I would say…
- This protects my project and work experience accounts because…
Before you finish, read your page back and check that each risk you named is matched with a person who could actually help with that risk.
- {{code:sm4_digital_safety_notes}} is saved inside {{code:09_specialism/sm4/}} and uses your own wording, not a copied paragraph from the board
- Cyberbullying, identity theft, and the Irish digital age of consent (16) are each explained clearly enough that a classmate could understand them
- At least three people you could tell appear, each with a plain-language note on what they can do
- The page ends with one concrete link to protecting your project accounts, files, or online presence
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