Julie’s Cyber Safety Story – “I Let My Son Use My Laptop.”

Each month the Cyber Safety Awareness Campaign team will be sharing a story that’s based 

on a real-life cybersecurity risk or incident at NIH. This effort is meant to raise awareness that 

cyber safety is a very real concern for all of us at NIH.

“My name is Julie, and this is the story of what happened when I 

let my ten-year-old son use my NIH laptop.” 

I had wrapped up working from home and was starting to make 

dinner when my son walked in. He wanted to know if he could use 

my NIH laptop to play a game he had heard about online.

Hoping to keep him busy until dinner was ready, I logged into the computer for him and left to 

finish cooking.

Later that evening, I opened my laptop to check my email and immediately noticed a pop-up 

message saying that my system had been compromised by malware. That’s when it hit me that 

I had made a huge mistake. I called the NIH IT Service Desk to report a cyber incident.

Which of the following remote work best practices could have helped Julie prevent this 

potentially dangerous cybersecurity incident?

A. Never allow anyone, even your family, to use your government-issued equipment

B. Only allow others to use your government-issued equipment with close supervision

C. Use a designated space within your home as a remote work office to control access

To find out the correct answer(s) and learn more about working from home securely, visit the 

Sharing Our Cyber Stories page on the Cyber Safety Awareness Campaign website.

Thank you for your ongoing commitment to cyber safety. Your hard work enables us to 

continue to Protect our People and our Science and to safeguard the mission of the NIH.

Best,

Jothi Dugar 

Cyber Safety Awareness Campaign Lead

National Institutes of Health

Cyber Safety. Protect our People and our Science.
Have your own cybersecurity story? Share it here.

Click the button below to share your own real-life cyber safety story. Your experiences will help others 

across NIH understand the reality of cyber risk.

SHARE MY STORY

Click here for instructions on how to use the challenge’s crowdsourcing website.

Want to Learn More?

Check out this quick resource on how to work securely from home.

Which of the following remote work best practices could have helped Julie prevent this 

potentially dangerous cybersecurity incident?

A. Never allow anyone, even your family, to use your government-issued equipment

B. Only allow others to use your government-issued equipment with close supervision

C. Use a designated space within your home as a remote work office to control access

Julie’s Cyber Safety Story – “I Let My Son Use My Laptop”

He asked if he could use my NIH laptop to play a game he had heard about online.

Hoping to keep him busy until dinner was ready, I logged into the computer for

him and left to finish cooking.

Later that evening, I opened my laptop to check my email and immediately

noticed a pop-up message saying that my system had been compromised by

malware. That’s when it hit me that I had made a huge mistake. I called the NIH

IT Service Desk to report a cyber incident.

Answer

There are a few things that Julie could have done to prevent this incident from happening:

A. Never allow anyone, even your family, to use your government-issued equipment

C. Use a designated space within your home as a remote work office to control access

When you are working from home it’s more important than ever to remember that your 

government-issued equipment is for your use only. It is against NIH policy to allow anyone 

else to use your log-in information for any reason, including family and friends.

To assist with keeping work files and equipment safe, NIH recommends that you designate a 

space within your home for remote work, such as an office or bedroom. Keeping your work 

equipment and files in a closed room may help children understand that these items are 

tools for you to use, not toys for them to play with.

Cyber Safety Resources

Campaign Sponsors

Stacie Alboum

Deputy Director

Center for Info. Tech.

Patrick Shirdon

Director of Management

National Institute on Aging

Andrea Norris

Chief Information Officer

Jothi Dugar

Chief Information Security Officer

Center for Information Technology

Campaign Lead

“My name is Julie, and this is the story of what happened

when I let my ten-year-old son use my NIH laptop.”

I had wrapped up working from home and was starting to

make dinner when my son walked into the kitchen.

OUR CYBER STORIES

You asked, we listened. We know that making cyber risks real makes it easier for all of us to prioritize

cyber safety in our daily work. That’s why, over the past few months, we’ve been collecting stories across

NIH about real-life cybersecurity incidents and risks. Each month, we’ll be sharing a new story inspired by

a real-life risk or incident to help us all learn and grow as a cyber-safe community.

Click to Read | Remote Work | Sensitive Information

Resources for Children and Families

Cyber Safety & COVID-19

Leadership Toolkit

Cyber Safety Tips & Tricks

Phishing

Physical & Logical Security

Travel

Remote Work

Protecting Sensitive Information

OCIO Security Awareness Gallery

Department of Homeland Security – National Cybersecurity Awareness Month Resources

Find Your Information System Security Officer (ISSO)

Find Your Privacy Coordinator