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Here’s What You Need to Know About Internet Safety for Children
A friend of mine over at TheOneSpy.com has offered to guest post for us about the dangers our children face every day on the internet! Aline has provided some great insight into how we as parents can protect our children from these dangers, and help us to have internet safe kids!
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Here’s How Parents Can Make the Internet Safe for Kids
The internet has turned out to be the most crucial technology for the millennial and post-millennial generation. While the internet plays a significant role in getting us connected with the people across the world, it also facilitates children in getting distance education, learning several skills and boosting their confidence. In this digital age, we cannot even imagine living a life without the use of the internet. However, the excessive and unsupervised use of technology can lead our children to the haunted digital world. Just like other technologies, the internet also carries innumerable dangers for teens and tweens. The more time kids spend online, the more they are probable to expose to cyber-bullies, child predators, sex-offenders, and criminals. This article discusses the threats prevailing on the internet and the ways parents can protect their kids from the menaces of internet technology.
The Common Online Threats for Kids
While the internet allows our young generation to get introduced with the world, it also puts them in danger letting the scoundrels access them. From cyber-bullies to child predators, the online criminals are always in hunt of the adolescents to victimize them for sexual purposes or monetary gain. Given are the most common online threats teens are likely to experience in the internet-connected world.
-Cyber Bullying
Bullying is the most common online threat which is affecting millions of internet users. The bullies use social media, chat-rooms, emails and other online forums to humiliate, offend and harass their victims. It puts negative impacts on the physical, mental and psychological health of the victims.
-Child Molestation
Child molesters are adult internet users who target teens and tweens and sexually exploit them. They groom their target; induce them to enter into a relationship; share child pornography content with the target and use them for re-producing such content.
-Sexually Explicit Stuff
The internet is loaded with objectionable and sexually explicit content. There are numerous websites that display adult ads and host links to adult websites. It increases the chances of being exposed to age-inappropriate content intentionally or accidentally. The more your kids remain connected to the internet, the more they are likely to be exposed to pornography.
How Parents Can Make Internet Safe
There are several methods parents can employ to make the internet less harmful. From the use of default parental control options of internet web browsers to the monitoring software, this article discusses numerous useful ways to make the internet less vulnerable.
-Web Filtering
The most important thing you can do first to protect your kids from the internet menaces is to filter websites and block objectionable and adult websites from the server. You can set your internet router to filter certain websites across all the computers, mobile phones and other devices connected to that internet router.
You can also use web filtering software such as Net Nanny to restrict your kid’s access to objectionable content. The award-winning software application enables parents to filter websites to block access to pornography and adult content. The software acts as an internet browser and enables your kids to surf the internet safely. It masks inappropriate photos and language and blocks webs pages containing inappropriate stuff from opening.
-Supervise Internet Access
In this digital age, we cannot disallow kids to use the internet as their learning is associated with this technology. However, leaving them alone with their phones and the internet can do more harm than good. Our kids are in the developmental stage where they may not be able to make rational decisions when it comes to the responsible and careful use of powerful things like the internet. Make sure you supervise their internet use. Place the home computers in an area where you can easily monitor them.
-Make Internet Safety Rules
Rules always work whether you like them or not. Compile a list of internet safety rules and make it necessary for all the family members to obey these rules. For example, you can restrict your kids from communicating with strangers and accepting their friend requests. Let your kids know that posting personal information on the online platforms can be troublesome as it can be misused by the scoundrels. Make sure your kids neither post their contact details on social media platforms nor disclose inappropriate photos and videos. Do not allow kids to use age-inappropriate social media and gaming apps. Make it compulsory for kids to immediately inform their elders if they experience any unusual or negative thing on the internet. Also, make sure they follow all the internet safety rules within and beyond home.
-Instill Responsible Internet Use
Have frequent discussions with your kids about the internet menaces. Talk to them about online child predators and the ways they exploit children. Get them to learn the ways to combat cyber-bullying and cat-fishing. Inform them how they should behave if they receive threatening or fleshy messages from someone on the internet.
-Use Monitoring Software
The technologists have developed cell phone monitoring and tracking software for parents to supervise the online activities of their children. Once you install the software on the mobile phone or computer of your kid, you can track all the activities performed on these devices. You can get access to the internet browsing history of the monitored device to find out which websites and information your child looked for. The software can also be used for filtering websites and restricting access to objectionable and age-inappropriate websites and applications. Meanwhile, the monitoring software enables parents to monitor social media and instant messaging apps installed on their kids’ devices. The software also offers innumerable features to keep you updated on every single online and offline activity of your kid.
The Bottom Line
There are numerous ways to restrict your kids’ access to objectionable and vulnerable things on the internet. However, educating your kids about the internet menaces and using the internet responsibly and securely is of greater importance. In the beginning, try to be involved with your kid’s internet activities and suggest to them how they can use this powerful technology in a safe way. What they learn in their initial stages will continue serving them later in their life.
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Kayla is the content creator over at motviationformom.com. She is a wife and mother who loves to share all of the tips, tricks, and life lessons that she has learned over the years with all of her readers. Her primary focus is on children’s education, motherhood, and healthy family relationships!