1. What is the main reason a video app or social media feed decides what to show you next?
To keep you watching or scrolling for as long as possible
Feeds are built to hold your attention, because the longer you stay, the more adverts the app or site can show you.
2. A video finishes and another one starts playing straight away, without you pressing anything. What is this feature usually called?
Autoplay
Autoplay is a deliberate design choice. It removes the natural moment where you would normally decide whether to keep watching.
3. In the phrase 'this app is designed for engagement', what does engagement mean?
How much you click, watch, scroll and react
Engagement is a measure of your attention and activity. Many apps are designed around growing it.
4. What is a loot box in a video game?
A random pack of in-game items you pay for without knowing exactly what you'll get
You hand over money or in-game currency before you know what's inside, which is what makes loot boxes controversial.
5. What is phishing?
A message or website designed to trick you into handing over personal information
Phishing messages are built to look trustworthy so you will click a link or type in details like a password.
6. Why is a password like 'password123' considered weak?
It's short, common, and easy for a computer program to guess
Programs used to crack passwords try common words and patterns first, so obvious passwords fall quickly.
7. Which of these best describes a strong password?
Long, and not an obvious word or pattern someone could guess
Length and unpredictability are what make a password hard to crack, not how memorable it feels to you.
8. What is a cookie, in the internet sense?
A small file a website saves on your device to remember details about your visit
Cookies let a site remember things like whether you are logged in, but they can also be used to track you across the web.
9. What is a 'digital footprint'?
The trail of information left behind by what you post, search and click online
Every post, search and click can add to a picture of you that exists even after you have moved on.
10. If a message online makes you feel scared, upset or unsafe, what is the best first step?
Tell a trusted adult about it
Telling a trusted adult is the sensible first move, even if it feels awkward. Adults can help, often more easily than it seems.
11. Most feeds and video apps never really reach an 'end', unlike the last page of a book. Why?
Infinite scroll is designed so there is no natural point to stop
Removing a natural stopping point is deliberate. Without one, it is easier to keep scrolling past the point you meant to stop.
12. A social media app is free to use. How does the company that runs it usually make money?
By selling advertising space in people's feeds
Attention is what is actually being sold. Advertisers pay to reach the people using the app.
13. Which of these is most likely to be an advert, even if it appears among ordinary posts?
A post labelled 'sponsored' or 'paid partnership'
Labels like 'sponsored' or 'paid partnership' are the clearest sign a post is an advert, even when it is mixed in with normal content.
14. A creator posts a video saying 'thanks to this brand for sending me this product to try'. What is this an example of?
Sponsored content
When a creator is paid or given free products to feature something, it is sponsored content, even if it is presented casually.
15. Loot boxes and similar in-game purchases are often designed with bright lights, music and a slow reveal. Why?
To make opening one feel exciting, so you are more likely to want another
The build-up is deliberate. It is designed to make the moment feel rewarding, which encourages more spending.
16. A message says 'Your account will be deleted, click here right now to stop it!' What detail should make you suspicious?
The pressure to act immediately
Urgency is one of the biggest warning signs of a scam. Real companies rarely demand you act within minutes.
17. You get a message saying you've won a prize in a competition you never entered. What is most likely going on?
It's a scam trying to get your details or money
A prize for a competition you never entered is one of the oldest scam tricks there is.
18. Why is using the same password on every account risky?
If one site is hacked, that password can be used to get into your other accounts too
A leaked password from one site becomes a key that fits every other lock you used it on.
19. What does a password manager do?
Creates and remembers strong, different passwords for each of your accounts
It takes away the need to remember dozens of passwords, so each one can be long and different.
20. What is two-factor authentication (2FA)?
A second check, like a code sent to your phone, needed alongside your password to log in
2FA adds a second proof that it's really you, on top of the password.
21. You look at shoes on one website, then start seeing shoe adverts on a completely different site. Why?
Trackers can share information about what you viewed with advertising networks
Trackers built into many websites pass on details about what you viewed, which is how adverts seem to follow you around.
22. Is asking a trusted adult for help with something that happened online ever a sign that you've failed?
No, it's a sensible and completely normal thing to do
Asking for help is what capable people do. It solves the problem faster than struggling with it alone.
23. Before sending a message online, which question is genuinely worth asking yourself first?
Would I be comfortable saying this to the person's face?
If you wouldn't say it face to face, that's usually a sign to rewrite it or not send it at all.
24. What is 'ad inventory'?
The number of advert slots an app or website has available to sell
Every scroll, video break or search results page is a potential slot a company can sell to advertisers. That's its inventory.
25. Why can adverts be hard to spot inside a feed, even when you're looking out for them?
They are designed to look and feel like the ordinary posts around them
Blending in is the point. An advert that looks like a normal post is more likely to be watched or clicked.
26. A game keeps offering small in-game purchases, each one only a couple of dollars. What is the real risk?
Small amounts add up to a lot of real money over time, without feeling like it
Small, frequent spending is easy to lose track of. It's the accumulated total that matters, not any single purchase.
27. Scam messages often pretend to be from a bank, a well-known company or someone you know. Why?
You're more likely to lower your guard with a name you already trust
Borrowing a trusted name is a shortcut past your suspicion, which is exactly why scammers do it.
28. A fake website looks almost, but not quite, identical to a real one, and asks you to type in your password. What is this called?
A phishing page
Copying a real site's look, down to small details, is a common phishing trick used to steal login details.
29. If you're worried about forgetting a new password, what is the safest place to keep a note of it?
In a password manager, or somewhere private that others can't see
A note anyone can see defeats the purpose of having a password at all.
30. Why does 2FA still protect your account even if someone else learns your password?
They would also need your phone or another device to get the extra code
The password alone isn't enough with 2FA switched on. Whoever's trying to log in also needs the second code.
31. What is a 'tracker' doing when it's built into a webpage?
Recording details about your visit, like which pages you viewed and for how long
Trackers quietly log behaviour, often to be used for advertising or to build a profile of visitors.
32. Why do many websites now ask you to 'accept cookies' before you can use them?
Laws in many countries require sites to ask permission before tracking visitors
Privacy laws in many places require websites to get some form of consent before using tracking cookies.
33. Many popular apps and websites cost nothing to use. How do they still make money?
Many earn money from advertising built around data about their users
If you're not paying with money, your attention and data are often what is being turned into revenue instead.
34. What do privacy settings on an app or account mainly let you control?
Who can see your posts, profile and other information
Privacy settings are about audience: who gets to see what you share, not how the app performs technically.
35. Setting a profile to 'private' or 'friends only' mainly does what?
Limits who can see what you post to people you've approved
A private setting restricts your audience. It doesn't change how long posts last or what the app costs.
36. A message you send privately to one person can still end up seen by others. How?
The other person can screenshot, save or forward it on
Sending something privately controls who you sent it to, not what the other person chooses to do with it afterwards.
37. What is cyberbullying?
Repeated unkind or threatening behaviour towards someone through messages, apps or online platforms
The key parts are that it's repeated and it's meant to upset or intimidate someone, not just one heated argument.
38. Default privacy settings on a new account are often more open than most people would actually choose. What's a sensible response to that?
Check and adjust the settings soon after signing up, rather than leaving them as they are
Companies often set defaults to share more, not less. A quick check after signing up is worth the few minutes it takes.
39. You suddenly receive a 2FA code you didn't request. What does that most likely mean?
Someone else has your password and is trying to log in
An unexpected code is a warning sign that someone else has your password. It's worth changing the password and telling a trusted adult.
40. Some countries have looked at making rules around loot boxes in video games. What concern usually drives this?
That loot boxes can work like a form of gambling for young players
Paying for a random reward without knowing what you'll get shares features with gambling, which is why some governments have looked at regulating it.
41. If you clear the cookies stored in your browser, what usually happens?
Sites may forget your logins and preferences until you set them up again
Cookies hold small bits of memory for a site, like being logged in. Clearing them just resets that memory, nothing more.
42. A single post rarely reveals much on its own. Why can a company still build a detailed picture of someone over time?
Lots of small pieces of information, added together over months or years, can reveal a great deal
It's the accumulation that matters. Small details from many visits can add up to a surprisingly complete profile.
43. Why do some employers or schools look up what's publicly visible about someone online?
What's publicly visible can shape the impression others form of that person
Whatever's public and searchable can be seen by people well beyond your friends, including people making decisions about you.
44. If you see someone else being bullied online, what is a genuinely helpful response?
Tell a trusted adult, and avoid sharing or forwarding it further
Forwarding it on spreads the harm further, even without meaning to. Telling an adult is the move that actually helps.
45. Why might someone say things online that they would never say to a person's face?
Not seeing the other person's reaction can make cruel words feel less real or serious
Distance and a lack of visible reaction can make it easier to say things a person would never say in person.
46. Turning off 'personalised' or 'targeted' adverts in an app's settings usually does what?
Changes which adverts you see, but doesn't stop adverts appearing altogether
Turning off personalisation changes the targeting, not the business model. Adverts still pay for a free app.
47. What is a 'dark pattern' in app or website design?
A design trick that nudges you into doing something you might not otherwise choose, like staying subscribed
Examples include a hard-to-find cancel button or a box that's ticked by default: small design choices that steer your decisions without you quite noticing.
48. A company shares data about its users with no names attached, calling it 'anonymised'. Why might someone still work out who a specific person is?
Combining enough details, like age, suburb and interests, can narrow it down to one person
Research has repeatedly shown that a handful of details together, even with no name attached, can point to one specific person.
49. You post a photo with no mention of where it was taken. How might people still work out the location?
Photos can carry hidden location and time details, called metadata, unless it's removed
Many phones quietly save GPS coordinates and the time inside the photo file itself. Some apps strip this out automatically, others don't.
50. A feed keeps showing you more of what you already click and watch. What can happen to the range of things you see, over time?
It can quietly narrow, so you notice a smaller range of views and topics than you'd expect
Showing more of what already holds your attention keeps you engaged, but it can slowly narrow the world a feed shows you.
51. An app doesn't know your name, yet the adverts you see still feel oddly relevant to you. How is that possible?
Adverts can be targeted using patterns like your device, location and browsing habits, not just a name
A name isn't needed to build a fairly accurate picture of someone's interests. Patterns of behaviour can be enough on their own.
52. You see private messages that were shared without the sender's permission. What is the best thing to do?
Avoid forwarding or sharing them further, and tell a trusted adult
Forwarding shared-without-permission messages spreads the harm further. Telling an adult is what actually helps.