Children and online safety: tips for families

There are many opinions about children using devices. Some parents prefer their little ones avoid screens during their early years, while others have no issue with mobile use from a young age. If you belong to the latter group, it’s essential to learn tips for ensuring internet safety for kids. Here, we’ll explore these recommendations in detail.

Educating children about their online safety and privacy

The first step in ensuring internet safety for kids is to be transparent about the topic, so it’s important to talk to them about it. This will allow you to teach your children the importance of protecting their online privacy. In your conversations, explain the risks of sharing sensitive information.

The data they need to protect the most is the personal, so teach them not to share their address, phone numbers, or the names of their schools. Also, encourage them to be cautious about the photos they share, as these could reveal personal details, like their home number or the family car’s license plate.

Remember to adjust the topics and tone of the conversation to your children’s age to ensure they understand. Additionally, here are other important points to mention in your discussions:

• Privacy on Social Media: Explain how appropriate it is for their profiles to be set to private.
• Contact with Strangers: Make it clear that any virtual contact with strangers is strictly prohibited.

The importance of parental controls and monitoring tools

Monitoring and parental control programs allow you to track your children’s online activities. They also come with filters that help effectively block content that is inappropriate for their age. The platforms offering the most advanced services in this area are mSpy and Eyezy.

Parental control apps are known for being easy to install to grant access for Android or iPhone call recording without announcement, social media monitoring and many others. However, here’s a step-by-step guide on how to download and set up this type of platform:

1. Choose the ideal tool for you, whether it’s Eyezy or mSpy.
2. Go to their website, create an account, and subscribe.
3. Once your account is set up, download the parental control app and wait for it to install on your device.
4. After installation, log into the app and begin the setup process.
5. The first thing you’ll need to do is create a profile for each phone you want to monitor.
6. To monitor your child’s phone, you must have physical access to it in order to install app and enable monitoring.
7. Access the control panel of the parental control program to start viewing your child’s online activity.
8. Enable alerts to be notified if your child interacts with inappropriate content or engages in suspicious activities.

Once you complete these steps, you’ll have the maximum possible access to your child’s phone activity. However, we recommend finding a balance. Having the right to supervise should not be an excuse to invade their privacy. If your child feels overly monitored, they will lose trust in you.

Cyber safety tips and promoting positive online habits

Don’t rely solely on a parental control program; it’s ideal for your child to gradually learn how to stay safe online. You can achieve this by encouraging them to adopt positive habits. Here are some practices you can promote:

• Creating secure passwords (using a combination of symbols, numbers, and letters) and keeping them confidential.
• Regular app updates to ensure their security systems remain optimized.
• Identifying messages that seek to compromise their personal information or hack their devices.
• Using security measures, such as antivirus software and VPNs, to keep them protected.
• Setting a screen time limit to prevent excessive phone use and support emotional and physical well-being.
• Engaging in offline activities, such as reading, outdoor play, and other practices that help maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Conclusion

The internet safety tips for kids help ensure that your child’s online experience is positive. What we’ve outlined shows that staying safe online is a team effort involving both you and your child.