Your Cybersecurity Action Checklist
Cybersecurity for Early Childhood Professionals
Institute for Childhood Preparedness
You just completed a course on cybersecurity for early childhood programs. Now it is time to put that knowledge into action.
This checklist gives you specific steps you can take Monday morning to strengthen your digital security. No advanced technical skills needed.
Update passwords on program computers, routers, and accounts that still use factory defaults.
Use at least 12 characters mixing uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and symbols. Try passphrases.
Enable 2FA on email, banking, and enrollment systems holding sensitive family or child data.
Give each staff member their own login. Shared passwords make it impossible to track access.
Post a reference near shared computers: urgent language, misspelled senders, unexpected attachments, requests for passwords.
If an email asks for money or sensitive info, call the sender at a number you look up independently.
Create a simple way for staff to report suspicious emails, like forwarding to a designated address.
Show real phishing examples at a staff meeting. Walk through the red flags together so everyone knows what to look for.
List every place you store personal info: enrollment forms, attendance apps, email, file cabinets, cloud drives.
Lock file cabinets. Set computers to auto lock after 5 minutes. Position screens away from visitors.
Check who can access enrollment records, payments, and family info. Remove access for anyone who no longer needs it.
Change the router password. Use WPA3/WPA2. Create a separate guest network for visitors.
Create or update a written policy on what staff can post about children and families. Have everyone sign it.
Search your program name online. Remove anything that reveals sensitive details about children or your facility.
Power off mobile devices for 5 minutes each day. This shuts down malicious apps running in the background.
Run software updates on all phones, tablets, and computers. Turn on automatic updates. Outdated software is an easy way in.
AI can clone voices and create fake videos. Verify unusual requests through a separate channel before acting.
Send a note to parents with tips on screen time, parental controls, and discussing internet safety at home.
Enable parental controls on tablets and computers children use. Install content filters. Check settings monthly.
Follow ICP for updates. Schedule a 15 minute monthly staff check-in to share what you have learned.
Spend 10 to 15 minutes at a staff meeting each month on one cybersecurity topic. Review a recent scam or practice spotting phishing.
Add a cybersecurity overview to new hire orientation covering passwords, phishing, and social media policies.
Post a one page checklist in the office: lock your screen, do not share passwords, verify unusual requests.
When staff catch a phishing email or follow protocol, recognize it. Positive reinforcement builds a security culture.
We hope you found this presentation useful.
Pick your top 3 actions and start Monday.
Have questions or need more support? We would love to hear from you.
icp.us
Institute for Childhood Preparedness