Even though many parents understand that they should use parental controls on their home computer, many never establish a means for getting the job done. According to a McAfee survey, most parents left their kids alone while surfing the internet and over half the parents surveyed didn’t know if their kids had a social networking account, like Facebook. Another study indicated that approximately 72 percent of teens do have social networking profiles and almost half of them are public profiles viewable by anyone.
Parents must realize that Internet security is needed across multiple devices. With the advancements in technology, children have Internet access on smartphones, iPads, tablets and other mobile devices. Mobile technology can expose children to not only the good, but also all of the bad on the Internet. We must look at privacy settings and how all of these devices are set up.
Personal monitoring of mobile devices isn’t always possible since, kids use them on the way to school and even while school is in session. We really do need to educate our children rather than being helicopter parents. It is all very well putting in software to monitor, but this is the same principle as putting a camera on their head when they are out with friends.
Turning the Tide
The best way to protect your children is to keep an open line of communication in which both you and your children clearly understand some of the very dangerous situations that could be presented online. By downloading Gooseberry Planet this will help your child be educated on online safety issues.
They also need to know what kind of personal information is being published publicly online. Children need to know that telling parents about inappropriate contact with someone on the Internet is appreciated and will not result in a restriction of their cell phone usage.
