We all know that the Internet can be a dark, and at times, pretty dangerous place. So if we don’t keep our footing it’s easy to tumble down the rabbit hole, ending up on a site that isn’t remotely family friendly and wondering how on earth we got there! What’s worse is that even the most innocent of phrases can bring up violent or pornographic content yet it’s our kids who are logging on the most!
See For Yourself
Just like the real world cyberspace has its dodgy neighborhoods, and so the best way to keep your kids safe is to check out who they’ve been visiting. You can either check their internet history, although kids know about this and will clear it, install a keylogger which tracks everything they do on the computer or do it the-old fashioned way and watch them for a while. We know that spending yet another Saturday on the Shopkins website or trawling YouTube for adorable kitten videos is going to get tedious quickly, but checking out what your kids get up to online will not only give you peace of mind but will let them breathe an easy sigh of relief too.
Set Rules
Younger kids should rarely have unsupervised internet access, even in if you aren’t hovering over their shoulder you should at least be in the same room and check in periodically. Try to keep the family computer in a central location. Limit internet access to less than two hours per day, and write down any sites that they need your permission, such as Amazon, Ebay or Facebook to access as well as installing a site blocker for those that you feel are inappropriate. Don’t forget to explain how phishing scams work and if they want to watch movies; it’s best they download ShowBox from their official site instead of tooling the net for illegal copies. It can be harder to police older kids, but there’s no reason why you can’t ask to look at their devices every so often. If kids break the rules, such as turning Wi-Fi back on or visiting a barred site then they should be prepared to face the consequences.
Private Profiles
Teens especially love Twitter, Instagram, and Whatsapp as well as online forums such as Habbo Hotel and Reddit. However, kids should only accept friend requests from people that they know, never click on any dodgy links or emails and, without exception, never give out their real name, address, phone number or any images without checking with you first. It’s very easy to steal someone’s identity with just a few key pieces of information as well as luring a child to a secret location by posing to be someone you’re not. Remember, you can be anyone online so even if they think they’re talking to their best friend it could be a complete stranger! Your kids should feel 100% comfortable coming to you at the first sign of trouble, so if there’s any mean messages, weird photos or disturbing comments you need to know about them.
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