Almost everything you will do online needs an account: an email address, a course website, a job portal, a video call app. Each account holds your name, your phone number and sometimes your money. Employers also want staff who will not fall for tricks that put customer information or company money at risk. That is why this section comes before you sign up for anything else.
What this section covers
- One email address you control. How to create a personal email address with a sensible name, and make sure you can always get back into it.
- Strong passwords and two step verification. How to make passwords that are hard to guess, and add a second lock so a stolen password is not enough.
- Spotting mobile money and online scams. The tricks people in Ghana use most often, and simple rules that protect you.
- Privacy on shared phones and computers. What to share and not share about yourself, and how to keep your accounts private when other people use your phone or computer.
Think of accounts like keys
Your email account is like the master key to your house. If someone gets it, they can reset the passwords of your other accounts, read your messages and pretend to be you. Your MoMo PIN is like the key to your money box. You would not give your house key to a stranger who called and said they were from the landlord. Online, the same common sense applies, but the tricks can be harder to spot.