School holidays are here and your kids are safe and snug at home surfing the Internet. But maybe they’re not as safe and protected as you think.
In the last few years, the Internet has spawned an explosion of information for children, some of which can be processed in the palm of a child’s hand. But it’s also brought along a very real threat: Internet luring and pornography.
Most parents, wouldn’t allow their child to talk randomly on the phone to a stranger, so why would they allow them to do the same thing on the Internet?
You can’t always keep inquisitive young minds from exploring the vast reaches of cyberspace. But parents should draw up a family agreement about Internet use in the house.
If kids are going to use the Web, make sure they do not give out any personal information—their name, age, sex, address, school, phone numbers or information on the family.
One solution is to have parents sit down and discuss with a child what can happen on the Net, including the dangers of unfamiliar persons making sexual advances in e-mails and downloading pornographic materials.
Above all, we should tell our kids that if they’re talking to someone who makes them feel uncomfortable or is asking them to do inappropriate things, they should let us know, without fear of reprisal.
After all, most kids are naïve when it comes to their online associations.
As a result, parents must be vigilant and check their kids’ lists of contacts and ensure that they don’t talk to anyone through instant messaging whom they don’t know.
Obviously, there are a lot of wonderful things for kids to do online and many things they should be encouraged to use the Internet for.
But there are dangers that lurk in the shadows of cyberspace. Predators are stalking our children online. Vigilance is one way of keeping our children safe from sick people who might harm them. Don’t ignore the situation. If your child has access to a device that connects to the internet, have that talk, make those rules & monitor their activity.
Article courtesy of Lp lootpress
