Internet Kid Safety - Why Important in 2018

by Gorav H. Digital Marketer and Pro. Blogger

Internet Kids safety is becoming more important than even; children often want to browse the online world like their peers, to watch videos, listen to music, or chat with friends. Sometimes school work even requires a child to work at a computer. With the Internet being so attractive to children but offering many dangers, how can parents help ensure that their child is browsing appropriate websites and is safe from harm?

This post is Part 2 of our 5 parts series on the subject matter. Please check our Part

1, “Online Family Safety” post here.

Staying Safe

I would personally recommend reading the FBI’s Parent’s Guide to Internet Safety as a first step. The guide offers a lot of a must-read type of information for all parents.

A good second step is to talk to your child. This is a vital but often neglected approach. A scare tactic isn’t necessarily needed at this point, I would rather just go over some basics, and explain why each online access rule is being laid down. Rules seem much more reasonable when they’re connected to proof rather than just being blindly laid out.

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Consistency is key, make the rules reasonable and consistent, lead by example and follow your own rules and be sure to enforce the laws you lay down and monitor your children activities. No matter how mature, a child is still a child. Check in now and then to make sure your kids are safe and following the rules. It is not necessary to poke and prod through every child’s browser history, but use common sense to balance between monitoring and invading your child privacy.

If you don’t feel the need to perform constant surveillance, at least pop in now and then to make sure everything is on the level. Remember, good behavior is rewarded, so if you trust your child, make sure they know how proud you are that they follow the online access rules.

For those parents who need a little extra help monitoring activity, there are many great products and services available to help. Unfortunately even though your child may be using the Internet responsibly, accidental access to inappropriate materials is almost guaranteed through typos in search keywords or site web address, web ads, etc. It is therefore imperative to use different security tools available in your browser, operating system or other software tools available online.

Parents can also find many computer software and services like NetNanny, Cyber Patrol and KidsWatch that can monitor websites, block content, and/or limit computer time. We will discuss these in more details in our Part 3 of this post series.

Topics to Discuss and Rules to Consider

For those of you who want to foster discussion or set up some Internet usage rules but don’t know where to start, as pointed above, the FBI’s Parent’s Guide to Internet Safety would sure help, Google’s Family Safety Center is also a great resource with tools, tips and advice from real parents on how you can keep your kids safe online. The Parental Science web page is also another favorite of mine, check out their article, “Social skills activities for children and teenagers: Ideas inspired by research”, very useful in developing essential social skills for your child to complement what online time could take away.

Here is also a quick and short list you may want to consider,

    Strangers. Children shouldn’t talk to strangers and should be wary of anyone online claiming to be a friend or relative. Remind your child that you would like to know of any new friends that approach them online so that you may verify their identity.
    Time limits and proper usage. How much time is your child allowed to spend online, and what is he or she allowed to do? Which websites are unacceptable? (Consider common websites like Facebook, YouTube, or Funny or Die.)
    What should your child do if they come across something bad? This is also important. Should s/he tell Mom, report it, or just log off and forget it?
    Monitoring. While giving your child her/his own space, as a preventive measure, let your child know that you will be checking in now and then.

Remember, it’s important to stay current with what your children are into. Give their world a try. Check out websites they enjoy and make sure you approve of what goes on before setting your children off on their own.

An article by Delhi Courses.