Bringing up children

WE’RE living in the Internet age, and it’s more important than ever before to teach your children how to use the Internet safely. Cyber bullying and sexual abuse are on the rise, and more and more predators are finding their victims online.
To keep your children safe, you should have a clear Internet usage policy in your home, with consequences if they fail to abide by it.

Here are some guidelines to help you along.

» Teach your children to guard against feeling too comfortable online, and to avoid giving out personal information to anyone that they don’t know personally.

Information to protect includes full name, hometown, school, birth date, age, social security number or account numbers, passwords, and any other personally identifying information.

Predators often "groom" their victims – getting to know them over a period of time while they slowly extract bits of personal information from them.

They may even pose as another teen to get the children to let down their guard.

» Explain to your child the danger of posting sexually explicit or suggestive pictures online. They could attract a predator, be released to someone your child doesn’t want to see them, or even a future employer.

Remind your children that the Internet isn’t always as anonymous as it appears to be.

» Show your children how to pick out a screen name that is an expression of their personality, but still anonymous. Teach them to leave out their names, ages, birth dates, and locations.

For example, sexxykatie197 might not be such a great idea, while dodgersfan003 is perfectly acceptable.

» Warn your children against sexual predators and how they generally operate. Teach them how dangerous it is to meet anyone in person that they’ve only met through the Internet.

Show them how to keep logs of their chats using instant messaging software, and how to save or archive their emails.

There’s no need to scare them to death, but be sure that they have a general knowledge of Internet safety and why it is important.

» Encourage open communication. Remind your children that your door is always open, and that they can talk to you about anything that makes them feel uncomfortable.

Tell your children that you’re more than willing to go to bat for them, but you need to have the information about what’s going on in order to do so.

If something on the Internet seems weird or strange, it probably is. If they’re being bullied or propositioned online, you need to know about it in order to help them.

The Internet is a truly wonderful tool. Many of us use it on a daily basis, either for work or personal use. With proper boundaries, it can truly expand your children’s world.

Take the time to teach your children how to use the Internet safely and to limit their risks. Doing so is a great investment of your time, and will help to keep them safe.