Have you all ever thought that we all will be so dependent on electronic gadgets in our daily life?
our children and are intentionally always dependent on electronic gadgets such as mobile phones, TVs, and computers, the internet.
Technology has changed everything so fast that we need all of such things, and it’s good that we are growing faster and smarter with the internet.
Internet is a great place to learn, shop, talk to your mates and gain knowledge but at the same time, we also have to take care of internet safety for our children.
To stay safe on the internet for our children, internet safety plays the main role in today’s era especially at the time of pandemic i.e. COVID-19.
After the Covid-19 pandemic, every one of us has shifted to digital life, including kids.
As schools have shifted to online classes and assignments shifted on mobile phones and laptops, our kids are online mostly the entire day. With the usage also comes the pain points for parents.
So, I thought of writing a blog for all guardians on How to protect our children on the internet.
What can Parents do?
First, start with the Basics: Talk to Your Kid or Teen.
Even though the internet is no new thing today, still Many among us don’t even think that internet safety for students is an important topic to discuss in today’s time that too after Corona Pandemic.
Parents should sit with their children when they are attending online classes or keep an eye on their children when they are spending a lot of time on the internet.
Keep your warnings brief and to the point.
Let them know some important danger signals and how to recognize them. Please encourage them to tell you, but at the very least, shut down or restart the computer.
Some good articles on internet safety tips for kids to help you communicate key concepts to your children:
http://www.unh.edu/ccrc/internet-crimes/safety_ed.html
http://childdevelopmentinfo.com/family-living/kids-media-safety/children-teens-web-internet-safety/
Set up Parental Controls.
In the past, I’ve found that the parental controls didn’t do much except cause frustration to anyone using that computer.
It seemed that over-blocking or not blocking at all made an effort futile.
Information abounds online on ways to set your computer for safer usage.
Search for “parental controls” and add your version like Windows 10 or iPad 2 or whatever you are working with or check out:
HowToGeek.com/167545/4-ways-to-set-up-parental-controls-on-your-home-network/
Use Google’s Safe Search for security.
We’re only covering Google Chrome since it’s used for over 90% of online searches.
If you don’t know how to set your search preferences, it’s very simple and will only take a minute.
If you don’t use Google, it’s easy to search for safety choices on your browser of choice.
Setting up a safe search on Google varies depending on what device you are on, but here is a link that will block the worst on Google Chrome:
https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/510?hl=en
Be sure to save preferences before you leave the page.
I have found this works very well for me, rarely encountering a remotely questionable site.
Use Child Safety Filtering Services.
It used to be enough that setting the family computer in a central location and occasionally checking the search history (try: Control+Shift+H to see a recent history of visited sites) was enough.
It’s gone way beyond that, which is why there are so many child safety filtering services out there now.
But how do you choose?
Most internet security suites offer parental controls, but they are reported to never be as fully functional and effective as stand-alone programs.
Here are some simple Internet safety tips for kids.
1. Try not to give anybody your secret key, name, address, the name of your school or any data about your family.
2. Try not to converse with outsiders on the Internet
3. Try not to consent to meet anybody in person that you’ve met on the web.
4. Try not to fill in a profile that requests your name and address.
5. Try not to visit a talk room without a grown-up’s/parent’s consent.
6. Try not to remain on the web all the time.
7. Try not to post pictures of yourself without your folks’ authorization.
8. Try not to download or introduce anything on your PC without your folks’ authorization.
9. On the off chance that you have any inquiries about something you read, ask your parent or any adult at home.
10. On the off chance that you are conversing with somebody on the web and they make you awkward, recall you don’t need to sass them.
Every parent wants to protect their child. I guess our Parental instincts work in the same way.
I have personally benefitted from the above internet safety tips for kids and made online surfing safe for my daughter. Give it a try and let me know your experience.
I would be more than happy if you have any more information or tips to add.
Stay Home, Stay Safe, and Stay Strong.
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