The World Wide Web will present you and your whole family with an exciting new world of experiences. All Content and information on the internet is available And free for everyone to access and depending on what you are searching for, the content that is available to you can be range from entertaining, educational and rewarding to explicit, offensive and irrelevant to your needs. Cyber safety is extremely important and protecting your children from this harmful information is just as important online as it is in the real world. If you are a parent, you can play an important role in cyber safety awareness, education and helping your children have a safe and positive experience when online and help them avoid bad content that is sexually explicit, violent, prohibited or even illegal.
Another risk involved with online activity is the vulnerability to cyberbullying or unwanted contact by strangers. There is also risks that your children may unknowingly or deliberately share personal information without realising they may be subject to financial or identity theft. Below are a few tips to follow in regards to cyber safety for children to help you protect your children online.
Cyber Safety tips to help you protect your children online
Here are some basic tips to help you protect your children online:
- ensure that your computer located in a public area of your home – the family or living room, rather than a bedroom.
- speak to your children about cyber safety and the kinds of sites that are safe to visit and those to steer clear of.
- share the experience of exploring the Internet with your children and direct them to safe sites that can be helpful. Bookmark these websites for them so that can be easily accessed.
- make yourself aware of what your children are doing online and which sites they are visiting.
- encourage them to tell you if they come across anything suspicious or if anybody says or does something that makes them feel uncomfortable or threatened.
- if you have older children, investigate tools that have the ability to filter access to chat rooms and prevent giving out personal information.
- research the current technologies and social media trends your children are using. This will help you learn the associated risks and allow you to talk to them about how they are using them.
- agree on some a set of rules for internet use. Post them clearly near your computer.
- one of these rules must be never to share personal information or photos. This includes their full name, mailing address, telephone number, financial information, the name of their school, or any information that could allow someone to work out who they are and where they live.
- install an internet content filter. This can be used to restrict what content is viewed and downloaded or the times when they can use the internet.
- ensure your PC is up to date with the latest antivirus and antispyware software.
- create different user accounts for each member of the family. All operating systems allow you to create multiple users accounts for your computer. Each user logs on with a unique profile and his or her own Desktop and My Documents folder. You can give yourself an Administrator account and give your children Limited User accounts. Administrator accounts have full control over the computer. Limited Users cannot change system settings or install new hardware or software, including most games, media players, and chat programs.
- it might not be possible to be present whenever your children are online. But it is possible to check later to see where your children have spent their time online. By reviewing the History list in Internet Explorer, you can see all the places your children visited online. To view your Internet History, click the History button on the browser toolbar.
If you like this post please visit Fight back! – How to report Cyber-Crime in Australia. Have you become a victim of Cybercrime or an internet scam or fraud? Should you report it? Just because a crime is perpetrated via the net doesn’t make it any less of a crime. You can do this by visiting the Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network website – https://www.acorn.gov.au .
