kidcomputerONLINE SAFETY TIPS FOR FAMILIES

 

 

  

Did you know...

  • one in seven youth are solicited sexually online?
  • the average age of first time exposure to pornography on the Internet is 11?
  • 26 children's character names are linked to pornographic sites?

Follow these tips to help keep your family safe online.

 SAFETY RESOURCES

For young kids:
www.surfswellisland.com

For teens:
www.2smrt4u.com and http://tcs.cybertipline.com

For parents:
www.getnetwise.com and www.wiredsafety.org

 

 

SAFETY TOOLS

Filtering software - blocks sites for keywords you have concerns about. Outgoing filtering prevents kids from sharing personal information.

Monitoring and tracking software - allows you to know what your kids are doing online and how long they are online.

Blocking software - allows you to set-up a "good site" list or a "bad site" list that helps control what sites users can go to.


 

 

  

SAFETY TIPS

  • Put the computer in a common area - not the kids' bedrooms, place the monitor so it can be seen easily, stop by once in a while and check in.
  • Let young children show you what they can do online and visit their favorite sites.
  • Teach kids why they should never fill out forms or provide personal info to others (name, number, address, email address, school, etc.)
  • When completing homework, have kids use child-friendly search engines like www.askforkids.com and www.kids.yahoo.com. If you use Google, go to "preferences" and select "use strict filtering" to filter out mature images.
  • For teens, learn about the dangers of social networking sites (MySpace, Facebook, etc.) and talk to them about appropriate use.
  • Prevent or monitor the use of chat rooms - 89% of sexual solicitations occur in chat rooms.
  • Know who children are communicating with. Talk to them about not responding to mean, offensive, or uncomfortable chat, email, or other communications.
  • Make sure they know it is okay to come to you if anything scary, hurtful, or uncomfortable happens while they are online.
  • Teach kids never to get together with people they met on the Internet without you and teach them not to invite people they meet online to your home. Remind them that people online are not always who they say they are.
  • accounts should be in the parent's names and use screen names and user IDs that are not easily identifiable as being a child. Passwords should be in the parents control. Consider using a password on your computer or screen-saver or computer start-up so you can control use.
  • Discuss online safety with your kids. Agree on house rules and post them near the computer monitor. These reminders can include what they can and cannot do online.
     

 
   
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