What Information Should Children Never Share Online?
Topics covered in this article include:
What Information Should Children Never Share Online?
Passwords and Login Information
Home Address
Phone Number
Exact or Live Location
School Name and School Information
Information About Their Daily Routine
When They Are Home Alone
Financial and Payment Information
Verification Codes
Private or Intimate Images
Other People's Personal Information
Personal Information Can Add Up
Teach Children to Look Beyond What They're Typing
What Should Children Do When Someone Asks for Personal Information?
Don't Just Teach Children What Not to Share. Teach Them Why.
The Most Important Lesson
Help Your Child Build Safer Online Habits
"Don't share personal information online."
It's one of the most common pieces of online safety advice we give children.
But there's a problem.
Do children actually know what we mean by personal information?
A child might know never to share their password or home address, but happily tell someone in an online game which school they attend.
They might know their phone number is private but post a photo showing their school uniform, street sign and sporting club.
Or they might tell a new online friend that they're home alone because, to them, they're simply having a conversation.
Teaching children what information they should never share online isn't just about giving them a list of rules.
It's about helping them understand why certain information needs to be protected, how personal information can be revealed unintentionally and when they should stop and ask a trusted adult before sharing.
What Information Should Children Never Share Online?
As a starting point, children should be taught to protect information that could allow someone to identify them, contact them, locate them, access their accounts or learn about their routines.
This includes:
Passwords and login details
Home address
Phone number
Exact or live location
School name and identifying school information
Information about when they're home alone
Regular routines and locations
Financial and payment information
Private or intimate photos
Personal information belonging to other people
There are also many pieces of information that aren't necessarily never share information, but should be treated carefully, including a child's full name, birthday, age, email address, photos, sporting clubs and other details about their everyday life.
The important lesson is:
Personal information isn't only information that feels secret. Ordinary information can reveal much more than children realise.
Passwords and Login Information
Passwords are one of the clearest examples of information children should never casually share online.
That includes passwords for:
Games
Email accounts
Social media
Apps
School accounts
Devices
Online services
Children may be tempted to share passwords with friends, particularly when they're playing games together.
A friend might say:
"Give me your password and I'll get you to the next level."
Or:
"Let me log in and I'll give you some of my items."
Children should understand that passwords protect access to their accounts and personal information.
A simple rule is:
Passwords are private. Don't share them with friends or people you meet online.
Parents should also teach children never to send passwords through messages, chats or social media.
Home Address
Children should understand why their home address should not be shared with people online.
Rather than simply saying:
"Never tell anyone your address."
Explain the reason:
"Your home address tells someone exactly where you and your family live."
Children can also reveal where they live unintentionally.
A photo taken outside the house might show a house number.
A video might capture a street sign.
A photo of a parcel could show an address label.
A location tag might identify exactly where the photo was taken.
Teaching children to check the background of photos and videos is therefore just as important as teaching them not to type their address into a chat.
Phone Number
A child's phone number provides a direct way for someone to contact them outside the original game, app or platform.
This matters because conversations can sometimes move from a more visible or moderated environment into private messaging.
Children should be cautious if someone they've met online says:
"What's your number?"
"Let's talk on WhatsApp."
"Send me your number so we can chat privately."
Children need to know that they don't have to give someone personal information just because they've been asked for it.
They can say no.
They can leave the conversation.
And they can tell a trusted adult if a request makes them uncomfortable.
Exact or Live Location
Children should avoid publicly sharing their exact location or where they are in real time.
Posts such as:
"Home alone!"
"Waiting outside school for Mum."
"At the park right now!"
can reveal where a child is at a particular moment.
Some apps and devices can also share location automatically.
Teach children to understand the difference between:
"We went to the beach today."
and:
"I'm at this beach right now."
Real-time location information deserves particular care because it can reveal exactly where a child can currently be found.
School Name and School Information
A child's school is also information that should be protected.
Children may reveal their school through:
School names
Uniforms
Logos
Badges
Sporting uniforms
Photos outside school
School events
Location tags
Knowing which school a child attends reveals somewhere they're likely to spend a significant amount of time. It can also be combined with other information, such as their name, age, suburb and sporting activities. Children should therefore learn to recognise their school as personal information, even if it doesn't feel private.
Information About Their Daily Routine
Children should be careful about sharing information that tells people where they regularly go and when they'll be there.
For example:
"Football training at Greenfield Park every Tuesday at 5."
"I walk home from school by myself."
"Mum doesn't get home until six."
"I'm always at swimming on Saturday mornings."
To a child, these are simply facts about their life.
But routines can reveal predictable information about where a child will be at particular times.
This is an important part of teaching children about personal information because it's less obvious than an address or password.
When They Are Home Alone
Children should be specifically taught not to publicly announce that they're home alone or without an adult. This can easily happen without children recognising it as personal information.
For example:
"Parents are out. Gaming all night!"
or:
"Home alone until Mum gets back from work."
To a child, this might simply be part of a conversation. But it reveals information about both their location and whether an adult is present.
Help children understand that information about who is or isn't at home is also something to protect.
Financial and Payment Information
Children increasingly interact with money online through games, apps and digital purchases.
They should never share:
Bank card numbers
Banking details
Payment information
PINs
Verification codes
Account login information
They should also learn to recognise requests involving money, prizes or rewards as something worth checking with an adult.
If someone says:
"Send me this code and I'll give you free game currency."
or:
"You've won a prize. I just need your parent's card details."
children should know to stop and ask a trusted adult.
Verification Codes
One piece of information that can easily be overlooked is a verification or security code.
Children may receive a text or email containing a code and then be asked by someone online to send it to them.
The request might sound harmless:
"I accidentally sent my code to your phone. Can you tell me what it says?"
Children should learn a very simple rule:
Never send someone a security or verification code you've received.
These codes can be used to access or take over accounts.
Private or Intimate Images
Children should understand that they should never feel pressured to send private, intimate or uncomfortable photos or videos of themselves.
Someone may use compliments, friendship, gifts, threats, embarrassment or secrecy to pressure a child into sending something.
Children need to hear clearly:
You can always say no.
If someone asks for an image that makes them uncomfortable, asks them to keep the request secret or threatens them if they refuse, they should stop communicating and tell a trusted adult.
And if a child has already sent something, they still need to know:
They can ask for help.
Fear of punishment should never become the reason a child hides an unsafe online situation.
Other People's Personal Information
Digital privacy isn't only about protecting our own information.
Children also need to learn to respect the privacy of other people.
Before posting a photo of a friend, sharing someone's phone number or telling people where another child lives, encourage them to ask:
"Is this my information to share?"
This helps children understand privacy as something we protect for ourselves and respect for other people.
Personal Information Can Add Up
One of the most important lessons children can learn is that small pieces of information can become much more revealing when they're combined.
Imagine a child shares:
Their first name in their gaming profile.
Their age in a conversation.
Their school uniform in a photo.
Their football club in another post.
Their suburb in a video.
Their Saturday routine in a comment.
No single post contains their entire identity.
Together, however, they create a much clearer picture.
Children don't need to understand complicated privacy terminology.
They just need to remember:
Small pieces of information can add up.
Teach Children to Look Beyond What They're Typing
Personal information isn't only shared through words.
Photos and videos can reveal:
School uniforms
House numbers
Street signs
Car registration details
Certificates containing names
Computer screens
Sporting clubs
Location information
Family photographs
Other children's information
Before posting, encourage children to look at the whole image, not just themselves.
A useful habit is:
Stop. Look. Check. Share.
Stop before posting.
Look at everything you're sharing.
Check whether it reveals personal information.
Share only when you're comfortable with who might see it.
What Should Children Do When Someone Asks for Personal Information?
Not every request for personal information will look obviously suspicious.
Someone might simply ask:
"What's your real name?"
"What school do you go to?"
"Where do you live?"
"What's your phone number?"
"Are your parents home?"
"Can you send me a photo?"
Rather than expecting children to decide whether the person asking is trustworthy, give them a simpler rule:
If someone online asks for personal information and you're unsure whether you should share it, don't answer yet. Ask a trusted adult.
Children should also know they can ignore a question, say no, leave a conversation or block someone.
Being safe isn't being rude.
Don't Just Teach Children What Not to Share. Teach Them Why.
A list of rules is a useful starting point.
But rules can't cover every situation a child will encounter online.
Understanding can.
Instead of:
"Don't share your school."
Explain:
"Your school tells someone somewhere you regularly spend your day."
Instead of:
"Don't share your location."
Explain:
"Your location can tell someone exactly where you are."
Instead of:
"Don't share your password."
Explain:
"Your password protects your account and the information inside it."
When children understand why personal information needs protecting, they're better able to recognise risks for themselves.
Try This With Your Child
Ask your child:
"What are five things you should never share with someone you meet online?"
See what they say before giving them the answers.
Then take the conversation one step further.
For every answer, ask:
"Why?"
If your child can explain why their password, location, address or other information needs protecting, they're developing something much more valuable than memorising a rule.
They're developing digital judgement.
The Most Important Lesson
Children don't need to be afraid of sharing online.
Sharing is part of how they communicate, play, learn and connect.
What they need is the ability to recognise which information deserves protection.
Teach children to think about whether something could tell another person:
Who they are.
Where they are.
Where they regularly go.
How to contact them.
How to access their accounts.
And when they're not sure?
Don't share yet. Ask a trusted adult.
The goal isn't to raise children who are afraid of the internet.
It's to raise children who know how to navigate it safely.
Help Your Child Build Safer Online Habits
The Digital Safety Playbook and Staying Safe Online helps children develop practical digital safety skills they can use in everyday online life.
Through child-friendly learning, Byte videos, quizzes and activities, children learn how to recognise personal information, protect their privacy, understand their digital footprint, identify online risks and know what to do when something doesn't feel right.
Because digital safety isn't just about giving children rules.
It's about giving them the skills to make safer decisions for themselves.