The Internet offers unprecedented freedom for people to express themselves and access information. That freedom is an undeniable force for good.
But there’s a flip side to the laissez-faire online environment. It can be a dangerous and dark place. This presents dangers for all Internet users but particularly children.
Broadly speaking there are three risks for children who use the Internet:
- Privacy – the Internet habits of children are often tracked. Marketers pay big money to find out what children are doing online and more unscrupulous groups will happily steal the identity of a 6 year old.
- Content – the Internet provides easy access to a range of lurid, objectionable, dangerous and illegal material. Unsupervised children can access much of this content relatively easily.
- Predators – dangerous people use the Internet to lure children into situations that could be physically harmful.
Children, and to a lesser extent teenagers, underestimate the risks to their privacy online. It’s important to discuss the issue with them. Explain how cookies and beacons can track their movements. Remind them not to give out their names and personal information online and let them know about the risks from some pop up ads – many of which deliver malware.
To protect children from objectionable content try to ensure the machine from which they access the Internet is in a common room in the house and monitor their movements. Monitoring software allows you to track their movements online in social media and block inappropriate sites. If you do monitor your children’s online activities make sure you discuss it with them.
Similar tactics can be employed to protect children from physical threats. As ever education is the most effective defence. Teach children to never meet someone they encounter online, never provide personal details or photos to people they don’t know, and never download photos from an unknown source and be aware that anything online may or may not be true.
Norton Online Family is a free online service that aims to keep your kids safe online. It can monitor what children are doing online, spot potential dangers before they become problems and help you manage your children’s computer time.
Norton 360 Version 6.0 and Norton Internet Security 2012 both contain features that can help you protect your children online. You can download you free trials here.
