Today the Internet has become a common commodity. Just like food, water, the electricity we need the internet. People varying from all age groups use the Internet to consume media, social media, business purposes, etc. A wide set of people who are using the internet in current times are the kids, especially the kids from the age of 14-18.
A report for Children’s Internet Usage Study by the Center for Cyber Safety and Education reported some very shocking yet true data and stats a few of which are as follows-
- 30 percent have used the internet in ways their parents wouldn’t approve
- 21 percent have visited sites where they can chat with strangers
- 17 percent have visited porn sites
- 11 percent have visited sites that offer ways to cheat on homework
- 4 percent have visited online gambling sites
This proves that a lot of children are doing what they are not supposed to do. This makes them highly vulnerable to a lot of malicious activities over the internet such as cyberbullying, cyberstalking, mental or emotional abuse, blackmailing the child, etc. where such things can lead to a permanent effect on the child. Thus it became very important to protect the younger generation from such people and such traps.
Still, the question is how to protect and safeguard the kids?
The answer to this question is simple. Firstly we need to educate them about the threat. For that we the adults need to know about these things. We need to keep ourselves updated, we must know about the social media platforms that the kids are using these days and what could be the potentially harmful effect of that.
Along with that, you must make some ground rules with your child such as-
- Keep your children’s computers in a common area of the home to monitor their activity.
- Must Check your child’s browsing history at regular intervals
- Use security software such as parental control software and devices which filter the inappropriate content for your child
- Use safe and secure online teaching platforms such as lido classes.
- Activate privacy features that allow you to monitor and control your child’s activity through your browser or internet service provider.
- Know what other computers or devices your child is using.
- You must have your children’s passwords.
- Carefully observe for any sudden changes in your child’s behavior these are the only early signs for cyberbullying or contact with an online sexual predator.
