If you’re reading this, then you are concerned about your child’s safety when online– and that’s good! The internet is here to stay and offers numerous advantages to educating and entertaining the little ones. From inappropriate content to abusive language and conduct, the internet is also home to various elements that can negatively affect your child. In England and Wales, one in five kids experienced online bullying in 2019 alone.
Although efforts are being made to educate your children and protect them from the negative sides of using the internet, there are several ways you can ensure your child’s online as a parent. You are responsible for putting in the proper measures to keep your kids safe online. So, do your kids have access to the internet? What are you doing, as a parent, to protect them from inappropriate content, predators, and bullies online? Here are some tips you could use.
Gain an understanding of why internet safety is important
Although the internet offers numerous benefits to kids, it also exposes them to four main risks – content, conduct, contact, and contract. “Content,” in this context, refers to inappropriate or pornographic materials, which have become even more accessible to users of the internet- especially your unsuspecting yet curious children. “Conduct” involves all inappropriate behaviours, including those of predators. It also includes kids behaving in ways that might hurt other kids online. “Contact” has to do with kids coming into close contact with abusive persons and adults posing as children online. “Contract” risks involve children signing up for illegal or unfair contracts bearing terms and conditions they might not understand.
If your children actively use the internet for their studies or communicating with their friends, it is crucial to ensure that they are not exposed to any of the risks.
Talk openly to your kids about their online activities
As soon as your children start accessing the internet, you must speak openly with them about the dangers to expect and how to conduct themselves. Talk to them about who they’re communicating with, the content they’re watching, and what they’re reading. However, this should not be a one-time conversation, and you should be sure to keep it going as they get older. Find out from your kids what websites they visit and apps they use. And be sure to note them down and inspect them yourself while continuously reminding them of what is appropriate and what isn’t.
No matter how honest you believe your child is, it would be best if you didn’t always take the word for it, especially as they get older. The older the child gets, the greater their desire for some privacy, including their online activities. Today, almost every online activity or content is accessible on a smartphone. You can hire a hacker for cell phone monitoring to keep track of your child’s activities while maintaining 100% confidentiality.
Create a media plan
In addition to speaking to your child about appropriate online activities, you can also create a media plan. This plan may include when and when not to use the internet, which websites or apps to use, keeping their phones or computers unlocked and accessible by you, etc. It should also include rules like not giving information about themselves or their family to strangers and ensuring they comport themselves in a way that doesn’t put themselves or other kids at risk.
Just as your child may be a victim of the risks online, they may also be instigators of such problems for others, like in cyberbullying. By monitoring your child’s behaviour online, you can identify these signs and correct them by teaching them about the dangers of online bullying or bullying in general.
Don’t let your child browse the internet alone
One of the fundamental principles of child safety online is ensuring that you don’t let your children browse unaccompanied, especially when they’re very young. You can make sure of this by having complete control of their internet connection. For example, you can set all the devices they use to forget the WiFi access password. This way, they cannot access the internet without you present. You can also limit the devices they use. For example, instead of giving them access to the bedrooms, you can dedicate one computer to them in the living room space to monitor their online activities.
Know your parental controls
Today, the online world is set up to direct even innocent searches to not-so-innocent results. That is why you need to know your parental controls. Most devices, browsers, and even internet service providers now offer parental control settings. You should take the time to understand how to use them with filters that block harmful, sexually explicit websites, graphic or violent content, and all other forms of inappropriate content online. You can also disable pop-ups to prevent the likelihood of your child ending up on the wrong website.
It would help if you also considered giving you and your kids separate devices from what you use. Your kids are curious. You may clear your browser history before you give your devices to your children. However, you can never be too careful. Giving them their new device ensures that your child does not come across inappropriate content and makes it easy to track their activities.
Know your child’s social media contacts
If there’s one thing most children, especially teenagers, really dislike, it’s having their parents following them on social media platforms. But that is what you need to do if you want to monitor their social media activities. Also, you should make sure that your children only accept friend requests or message people they already know on social media. As controlling as this may sound, you will be doing it all for their safety, and you should help them understand that. That is why it is best to talk to them about it first and let them know the dangers you’re trying to protect them from.
In today’s world of social media, the number of friends, followers, likes, and comments a person receives has almost become a source of popularity competition. That means your child is more likely to accept requests from strangers to increase how many followers or friends they have.
Use a virtual private network
You want to ensure that you prevent your location from being tracked while protecting your family on any network. You can do this by getting a virtual private network (VPN), which will connect all your devices to a secure offsite server and use an encrypted connection to ensure that you keep all your browsing data safe on that connection. Additionally, you need to ensure that you install up-to-date anti-virus solutions to prevent your device from malware and other cyberattacks.
There is life outside of the internet
Social media is becoming one of the most influential platforms for shaping children’s behaviour. From online trends to viral videos and the influence of different internet influencers, the internet is an engulfing world of its own. It helps remind your children of more important things outside the internet, so they don’t live their lives around the internet.
Try to be a good role model
Your child learns a lot from you. That means you can take advantage of it to model a good and safe way for them to follow. For example, if you enjoy playing online games, do your best not to be abusive with the language you use when playing with other online players.
*Collaborative post*
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