A Look at Internet Safety for Children
News of dangers facing families today - Let's do something about it!
Editor Marie Charpentier
Editor Marie Charpentier
Approximately 800,000 children are reporting missing each year in the U.S., according to the U.S. Department of Justice. That is 2,000 children reported missing each day! Unfortunately the computer brings this hazard into the safety of our homes with approximately one in seven youths (10 to 17 years) experiencing inappropriate sexual advances or images online.
What strategies are available to our society to protect our children? The NationalCenter for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) encourages conversation with kids acknowledging the educational and entertainment aspects while clearly communicating the risks of internet. Now as computer expands from a simple email and word or excel tool, so must our conversations to our children, including browsing the internet, IM, social networking, and do not forget wireless devices.
Ouri Azoulay, CEO of PureSight, an online protection software company, says to “Know the Internet. Learn about social networking websites, blogs, chats and forums. Get familiar with the Instant Messaging applications your children use. This is the first step for you to have a better understanding of potential online Internet risks.”
Knowledge will empower Parents with a clear picture of the dangers and from there create a list of well defined rules to communicate effectively, enforcement is a must. Use of the computer should be a privilege not a right and Parents need to have the authority to randomly check email and social networks. Online Child Safety Software provides a view into your child’s complete web surfing activities with real-time alerts profiling.
The next couple of weeks I will dive into the areas that need to be discussions within our community, talk to other Parents. Then with a clear understanding and belief system of the best safety strategy communicate with your children. Online topics to address;
1. Surfing the web
2. Email
3. IM
4. Social Networking
5. Wireless Devices, cellular phones, texting…