Secure Technology for Kids Online, Since the pandemic, having a digital device has become a must. If you’re a parent of a school-aged child, your kid may have asked you multiple times for a tablet, laptop, or mobile phone. And school-age children are usually independent online and go unsupervised. This has raised concern for parents since managing and monitoring kids’ online activity is challenging.
Pre-pandemic, the Pew Research Center conducted a poll. According to the study, screen time is a major issue for 71 percent of kids aged 11 and under. The report was released in July 2020, with 80 % reporting that their children use tablets. 63 % say their youngsters use smartphones.
Why Do We Have to Secure the Internet for Kids?
As interesting internet can be, it can also be educational and full of useful information for children and adolescents. It can also be a really dangerous place for them if left unsupervised. There are a lot of risks roaming the net unmonitored, threatening kids online. Parents need to understand cyber dangers and the different types.
To understand more read our blog on 7 Online Dangers That Threaten Children’s safety on the Internet.
Dangers of the Internet
Interactions with strangers:
- Cyberbullies: Strangers can harm others anonymously by sending mean, shaming, or threatening messages, causing victims to stress and anxiety.
- Phishing scammers: They trick children into sharing sensitive information about themselves or their parents so they can use or invade their existing accounts.
- Predators: Online predators use social networks, email, chatrooms, gaming forums, etc., to harass children and tweens online.
Inappropriate content:
- Sexually disturbing texts and images
- Sexting and sending nudes
- Violent content or games
- Age-inappropriate content
How to Secure the Tech World for Kids?
After acknowledging how the internet and the tech world can harm your child, it’s time to consider ways you could secure technology for kids online using technology. Here are some suggestions:
- Educate the child: It’s essential to talk to your child as the first step. Make them aware of all the potential dangers and risks that exist out in the world—a conversation based on trust.
- Teach them about online privacy: setting strong passwords, not sharing too much personal information, and not trusting any strangers even if they’re peers.
- Be careful about sharing: Children must know the consequences of sharing pictures of themselves or their families with strangers. They should also know it’s not ok if someone asks them about their family or personal issues.
- Build trust: Let them know you are on their side and they can tell you if something embarrassing happens to them. Ensure them that you can help them go through any online problem and that they can ask you about anything that makes them confused or upset.
Use Monitoring Apps and Services
If you have young children or tweens, you should know how challenging it could be to see what they do online and how you can secure technology for kids online. Use a parental control app that can give you an idea of what your child is doing online, alerts you, and gives you peace of mind. Creating a better Internet for kids with Safes parental control app.
A trusting parental control app should consist of three main functions:
- Monitoring: you should be able to monitor your child’s messages, browsing history, how much time they spend online, and get notifications about any concerning matter in the content.
- Filtering: any inappropriate content, games, certain sites, or applications
- Managing: limit their access, define what they can do in apps and how much time they can spend in each app
- Locating: some applications like Safes parental control super app allow you to set up a geofence for your child, so you’d be alerted if your child commutes in the selected geofence. You and your child can share your location and you can have access to their location history.
