Another Voice / Safe surfing
Parents must protect their kids on the Internet
Updated: 09/02/08 6:44 AM
As summer winds down and kids go back to school, there are several concerns on parents’ minds. Too often, parents overlook a threat on the Internet.
The Internet is a great tool, but there are dangers online — cyber bullies, child predators, identity thieves, spam, viruses, phishing scams and concerns about privacy.
Users should never download content from unknown sources or give out personal information online. Child predators and other cyber criminals are lurking on the Internet, looking to get information to use to find victims.
The fastest growing segment of identity theft online is children under 18. With the proliferation of social networking sites like Facebook and My- Space, explain to your children the impact that revealing too much information can have on their reputations and their futures.
A relatively new online threat is cyber bullying — repeated, unwanted or cruel behavior against someone through computers, cell phones or other Internet-enabled means. Unlike physical bullying, where the victim can often walk away, the Internet is always “on,” opening the door for 24-hour harassment. Cyber bullies can be anonymous. They can be virtually invisible to parents and adults.
Warning signs that your child may be the victim of cyber bullying can include depression, lack of interest in school and friends, drop in grades and subtle comments that something may be wrong. If your child is the victim of cyber bullying, take action immediately.
Proactively, parents can encourage children and their friends to look out for each other. Cyber bullies are less likely to target those whom they perceive will be supported. Get help from technology also. By filtering or blocking e-mail, instant messages and text messages, you can cut off many of the ways the cyber bullies contact your child. If harassment continues, change your child’s e-mail address, user names and Internet account.
If these steps do not stop the cyber bullying, contact the parents of the child who is behind the bullying, contact the school and, if the situation is not resolved, involve the police. Tell your kids not to respond to the bully.
It’s also critical that parents look for signs that their children may be cyber bullies. If they sign onto the Internet under someone else’s name, use someone else’s password without their permission, post rude or mean things about someone else online or change their profile in order to embarrass or frighten someone, they could be bullying.
Beyond our children, it’s important to take basic precautions online to protect yourself and your computer — use anti-virus software, make sure your fire-wall is activated, use passwords to protect information and change them regularly. Organizations like staysafe.org and the Federal Trade Commission ( www.ftc.gov ) have good resources. Randy Skoglund is the executive director of Americans for Technology Leadership.
