Top Tips to Keep Kids Safe When They’re Online
The internet has proven to be an excellent resource for children. Kids can use it to research essays or school work. They can also play mind-boggling games during their free time. Ideally, a child who is old enough has access to events around the globe with just one swipe of a screen.
Nonetheless, such unsupervised internet use can have devastating effects. For instance, your kid may come across indecent content by just clicking an ad accidentally. It is why it’s important to supervise everything your child sees and listens to on the Internet. You should also monitor the people they interact with and the information they share with other persons. Here are a few internet safety tips for your kids.
Explore the Internet together
As a parent, you are the ideal person to introduce your child to the internet. This is advantageous not just to the child but also to the parent. Look for websites that are fascinating and fun, to enable your child maintain a positive attitude to internet use. This way, it will be much easier for your kid to disclose any negative experiences he encounters in the future. For instance, if your child starts getting blackmailed because he shared sensitive data, you are the first person he will approach for help. During such situations, you should consider hiring a privacy litigation lawyer to advice you on what to do.
Make the rules for internet use together with your kid
Most parents will just set rules for internet use and then start imposing them on their kids. Although this may work, it is not the best approach to use. Instead, you should have a sit down with your kids and come up with these rules together. Here are a few tips that can help:
- Determine the specific times and duration acceptable for your kid to surf on the web
- Advice your kid on how to treat personal data such as name, address, emails and telephone number
- Establish how your child should behave as he interacts with others during gaming, emailing or messaging
- Agree those websites your kid can and cannot visit
Discuss the risks involved in meeting online friends in person
The internet can provide an excellent platform where your kid interacts with fellow kids and makes new friends. However, you should advise your child to never meet the people he meets online, in person. If such a meeting is to happen, then it should happen under the strict supervision of an adult. Besides, such meetings should never happen without the parent first approving.
Train your child to evaluate information critically
Most kids will use the internet to advance their knowledge on different subjects. Unfortunately, not all the information posted online is accurate. As such, you should teach your child how to assess the validity of the information they come across on the Internet. For instance, you can educate them to compare the content from different sites on a select topic. Recommend some trusted sites, which they can visit to verify certain information.
The Bottom Line
The internet is an indispensable educational and recreational tool for kids. However, making the wrong move can cause your child to end up with the wrong information or in an indecent site. To prevent this, you should explore the internet together with your child. Come up with internet usage rules and supervise them whenever they are browsing websites.
