KidsFirst! is web-based software that requires no software to install on your computer. This means you can access KidsFirst! using any computer with an Internet connection and web browser, whether from home, work, library, internet cafe or any other location. With no software to install, any improvements or enhancements of KidsFirst! are available to you instantly. The faster the Internet connection the more quickly your pages will be displayed within your browser. But in any event it should not take more than a few seconds to display a page even with a dial-up connection.
Because protecting your personal data is important to you and to us we use different proven methods of security. When you log in for each session, we require you to provide your User ID and Password to authenticate your identity. We protect your User ID and Password as it travels over the Internet from your computer to our Server.
After you successfully log in, we use “encryption algorithms” whereby your computer and our Servers agree on a random number among billions of possible numbers, which remains the key during your session. Encryption makes data extremely difficult to interpret because it translates data into random letters and numbers until it reaches its authorized destination, where a key re-translates the random letters and numbers back into data. Passwords, commands, and data are encrypted with 128 bit encryption algorithms, the most powerful encryption technology allowed by the U.S. government.
Your User ID and Password are encrypted within our Database Server and are not viewable or accessible by any person other than you. Our Database Server is on a totally different computer than the Web Server computer that hosts the user interface and content. In the unlikely event anyone gains access to the user interface or Web Server, your data is still protected because it resides on a different system at a different layer and is encrypted.
We also use security protection known as a “firewall” to protect our computer systems and your data. Firewalls can be thought of as a selective barrier that only permits legitimate users to access our computer systems. Your User ID and Password authenticate your right to access your personal data and the firewall opens for your access.
Another security protection we use is a “timeout” feature that will automatically log you off of your current session after a period of inactivity. You may set the length of this timeout feature. A timeout ensures that your session and personal data will be protected if you get distracted and forget to log out.