Security 101: Staying Safe Online

With today’s kids virtually growing up in front of computers, parents are often left behind. Since their children are more familiar about computers, many parents feel that they cannot protect them from the harmful aspects of this technology, which mostly come from the Internet, such as pedophiles, pornography, hate groups, etc.

But if you think the World Wide Web is one game you cannot play with your kids, think again. There are simple ways on ensuring your child’s safety online, even without being a computer expert.

For one, you can surf the net with your kids. Ask them to teach you the basics, such as chatting. Apart from being another opportunity to bond with them, you will be able to monitor whom your children are interacting with, as well as get to know their online friends.  

Just as you would do in any other privilege, set rules on using the computer. Decide on what time of the day they can use it, how long they can use it, and what sites they can visit. When they break the rules, be stern with your punishment so they’ll know you mean serious business. Make them aware of the dangers lurking in cyberspace.

You can also have a crash course on the various tools available to help you monitor your kids’ activities on the net. For example, you may learn how to setup a blocking or filtering software which will prevent your children from having access to websites with harmful contents. There are also programs which can block PopAds and Spams, most of which provide links to pornographic sites. You can even keep a log of all communication between your child and other people using some software.      

But since you cannot possibly be with your kid 24/7, you must give him reminders when being online. Inform him that the cardinal rule in being online is to never give out personal information including his full name,  address, school and contact numbers. Tell him that if he wants to divulge these pieces of information to a friend, he must seek your permission first.

Remind him to never send a picture of himself to anyone he’s chatting with online without first checking it with you. Make sure he knows that people online can easily hide their true selves, and may assume a different personality to gain his trust.

Ask him to tell you immediately if he reads anything or comes across any information in the net that makes him feel uncomfortable.

Last, but certainly not the least: Tell him never to meet any of his online pals in person, nor have them visit him without your permission. If you think it’s okay to meet someone he came across the net, accompany your child and make sure the meeting will take place in public.

By: Regine Anne Quimada