What is our plan for sharing passwords with friends? 

Parenting Perspective 

Children can often think that the act of sharing their passwords, whether it is for their games, their streaming accounts, or their personal devices, is a sign of a deep sense of trust or of friendship. They might say, ‘It is fine, we are best friends.’ However, what may begin as an act of closeness can easily turn into a source of conflict if that trust is tested or if the friendship shifts over time. Teaching your child that their privacy and their friendships can coexist is a way of helping them to form healthy boundaries that are built on a sense of respect, not on a sense of risk. 

Teaching That Trust Does Not Mean Total Access 

It is important to start with empathy. You could say, ‘It is natural to want to share things with the people that you trust, but your password is not something that should be given away. It is there to protect you.’ This can help your child to see their privacy not as a form of secrecy, but as a form of security. You can explain to them that their password is like a key to their own house; it is something that is personal and that should not be shared just for the sake of another person’s approval. 

Explaining Why Sharing Passwords Creates a Risk 

Children can often underestimate what another person could access with their password. It is important to explain to them in a clear and simple way: ‘When someone else has your password, they are able to change your settings, to post things in your name, or to see your private information.’ It can be helpful to give some gentle, real-life examples, such as a shared account being deleted or private messages being accidentally read. The goal here is not to create a sense of fear, but one of awareness. 

Building a Family Password Plan Together 

You can create some simple and practical rules together so that your child will know exactly what is safe for them to do. 

• Never share your passwords with your friends, even the ones that you trust the most. 

• Use different passwords for your different accounts. 

• Only share your passwords with your parents or your legal guardians if it is absolutely necessary, and never with your peers. 

• It is a good idea to change your passwords every few months, or after any suspicion that another person may have gained access to them. 

This approach helps to shift the dynamic from one of control to one of collaboration. 

Spiritual Insight 

Islam teaches believers to protect whatever has been entrusted to them, whether it is a secret, a key, or in today’s world, a password. The act of sharing our private access in a careless way can risk both our own safety and the trust of other people. The act of guarding our privacy is a part of our amanah (trustworthiness), which is a trait that helps to define a good and noble character. 

The Quranic Guidance on Trust and Responsibility 

Allah Almighty states in the noble Quran at Surah Al Anfaal (8), Verse 27: 

‘O you who are believers, do not ever be pretentious (in following the commandment) of Allah (Almighty) and His Prophet (Muhammad ﷺ); and do not misappropriate what has been entrusted upon you, whilst you know (the consequences of such actions).’ 

This verse reminds us that the act of keeping the things that have been entrusted to us safe, whether they are words, possessions, or pieces of information, is an act of faith. When your child chooses to protect their own password, they are not being secretive; they are honouring this divine principle of amanah. 

The Prophetic Teaching on Protection and Accountability 

It is recorded in Sunan Nisai, Hadith 5021, that the holy Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said: 

‘The signs of a hypocrite are three: when he speaks, he lies; when he makes a promise, he breaks it; and when he is entrusted, he betrays the trust.’ 

This hadith defines the sacred nature of an amanah (a trust). Our passwords, just like our secrets, are a modern form of a trust. Teaching your child not to share or to misuse them is a direct application of this beautiful teaching of protecting our sense of honesty and of reliability in the digital world. 

Teaching your child not to share their passwords does not have to build a sense of distance between them and their friends; it can help them to build a sense of discipline within themselves. They can learn from this that a real and lasting trust does not come from having unlocked accounts, but from a pattern of reliable and honest behaviour. 

Your own calm and consistent guidance can help them to feel proud of protecting what is theirs, rather than feeling guilty for saying ‘no’. They can begin to see for themselves that a sense of security is not a form of selfishness, but of good stewardship. 

As they grow, each careful click and each decision to protect their own privacy can become more than just a digital choice; it can become a quiet act of integrity, one that is a reflection of the wisdom of their faith, of their own sense of responsibility, and of the deep and abiding respect that our beautiful religion of Islam has always taught.