Today is Universal Children’s Day, a day set aside for everyone to protect and defend the rights of children. But do we know how to protect children from the dangers involving the Internet and new technologies? It’s important to defend their rights and their innocence in the online world.
The internet is a world known by the children and they must know how to handle it perfectly. Its domain of social networks, search engines, forums… In many instances children have a stronger understanding than that of their parents; therefore they sail along them without excessive parental control. There are many cybercriminals and stalkers who take advantage of this situation to take advantage of children, who are unaware of the dangers they face on almost all occasions.
Pornography, harassment, theft of data and identity… There are many threats facing children online. Through the computer, tablet, online games or mobile phone, children should know how to recognize and react to these situations.
How to Protect a Child’s Online Enviroment
1. Education
It is the cornerstone for training minors, but the dynamic growth of the online world makes it even more essential in this case. However, the little knowledge that parents know about the network causes education to be poor. What is Facebook? What is Tuenti? Should my child chat online with strangers? These are the questions that are asked on several occasions by parents who do not understand this new kind of social environment 2. 0.
Parents must teach their children how to create their online personality, just as they teach them how to behave in real life. There are some values that they should maintain in both worlds: do not to speak with strangers, do not to show an image of you that could be later used against you, do not to give personal details to people you don’t know … Web education and teachers are great the resources that parents who feel lost in this world can use.
2. Control the Hours Spent Online
In today’s work, the social relationships online compete against offline social relationships. All children should learn to disconnect, so they can continue to enjoy a conversation or a real life experience, away from the world 2.0.
3. Show Network Hazards
Sometimes overprotection hinders children from really knowing the threats that face them. Actual cases of harassment, espionage, identity theft, blackmail, etc will happen to those that are less aware threatening situations.
4. Who Does My Child Talk To?
Parents try to preserve the privacy of their children, but the truth is that you we need to know whose talking and what they’re saying. Just as in real life, a child must know to distrust a stranger who approaches them, they must also learn that these type of people exist and are duplicated within the online world.
5. Which Photos Should Be Uploaded to the Network?
It’s easy to control the clothing and appearance of children in real life, but do we know what pictures up of them are up on the network? We must remind them of the danger of over-exposure on the Internet. This issue is complicated because in many cases, not even the parents themselves are aware of the consequences of particular photographs up on a social network.
6. Where Does My Child Go Online?
There is certain web content that a minor does not have to see. Since it is impossible to control which pages your child is browsing on the Internet, or what places can be reached via banners and ads, you should install parental control. Through this, the parent may decide which sites are appropriate for their child.
7. Use Common Sense
Like always, if we teach our children to at least to use common sense, it can used within 2.0 world.
Have you ever faced an online situation complicated with a minor?
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