If you’re a parent worried about your child’s well being in the digital world and want to make their online experience healthy, here is a list of 7 common digital dangers that kids face and ways to combat them as a parent.
7 Common Digital Dangers That Kids Face
Cyberbullying
Cyberbullying is an ugly truth that persists in the online world, which can be especially scary for kids and teenagers who are still trying to find their way in the world and may attribute the negative comments to their personality, leading to low self esteem and dissatisfaction.
Most of the cyberbullying happens in games or social media platforms and is often done by peers or people of the same age. An instance of cyberbullying can include calling someone ugly or threatening them in a dangerous way to make them feel inferior.
How To Combat Cyberbullying?
To combat cyberbullying, you need to teach your children to block and report any such person and/or comments. Teach them to tell you about anything that makes them feel uncomfortable or hurt in the online sphere instead of engaging with the cyber bully on their own.
Online Predators
More often than not, kids can find themselves in chat rooms online that they join for fun or to find people with similar interests. This can make them prone to getting seen by online predators who are people that are much older than them. When these online predators come into contact with young children, they can try to groom them or pretend to be someone else for ulterior motives. It can be difficult for kids to differentiate between real and fake friends online, making it easier for online predators to take advantage of them.
How To Combat Online Predators?
Online predators can come in any form and are likely to be present everywhere. That’s why you must know all the passwords of your children’s social media accounts and use a parental control app if necessary to monitor their online activity.
Inappropriate Content
The internet is a place for bewilderment but it lacks a filter for age appropriateness and can make all kinds of content feasible to everyone. This means that it’s extremely easy for young children to stream content online, and read and watch things that might be inappropriate such as extreme violence or porn.
How To Combat Inappropriate Content?
In order to combat inappropriate content as a parent, you must create an open dialogue around such sensitive topics and help your kids understand the difference between what’s right and what’s wrong. If all your home devices are linked together, you can also use your router to block adult content on all devices and turn on the safe search option on all the devices that your kids use.
Phishing Scams
Phishing is one of the most common scams that kids can face, especially if they have an email account. These scammers pretend to be a known business or entity, and encourage people to give out their personal information such as bank account numbers, social security numbers, passwords, and other personal data. They send out links to people to fill out their information and once they get these details, they blackmail them or misuse the information to conduct financial and other scams.
How To Combat Phishing Scams?
Using an anti-malware software can solve most of your problems when it comes to scams like phishing while also making your devices more secure from any external threats. You can also start teaching your children, if they’re old enough, about what elements can seem suspicious in an email such as wrong spellings and incomplete information. They must immediately block such emails and never share any personal information with them or click on any links that they send.
Identity Theft
Identity theft is quite common and easy in the online world. When children post their information such as pictures and familial information online, cyber criminals can use this material to forge a fake identity. They can make fake accounts, hack into your child’s account, and pretend to be your child, fooling people that you know for monetary or other gains.
How To Combat Identity Theft?
Online identity theft can be scary and leave your children worried. However by using a paid or free antivirus download program and password management system, identity theft can be curbed to some degree. Once you’ve got some digital tools in the bag to stop the practice, teach your children to keep their personal identity and sensitive information private.
Excessive Screen Time
While it’s not an external danger per se, excessive screen time continues to be a big issue among kids who not only weaken their eyesight by continuously looking at digital screens but also face many negative consequences in terms of their physical and mental health by continuing to engage in the online world without taking frequent breaks.
How To Combat Excessive Screen Time?
Use a parental control app to set time limits and monitor your child’s online activity. You can also make family time a part of your routine to keep your children away from screens. They must also be taught not to use phones and other electronic devices in the bedroom and make time for play. If you want to keep them engaged for long periods of time, help your child discover some hobbies and make time for those activities.
Unsafe Private Information
Kids aren’t as careful about keeping their personal information private as adults are. They can leave their social media accounts unaccessed, share their personal information with ‘online friends’, and make it quite easy for cyber criminals to use their information by being generally careless. This private information can then be used for conducting scams and can even put their life at risk.
How To Combat Unsafe Private Information?
Help your children keep their private information safe by setting strong passwords with multi-factor authentication and using digital tools like password manager, Virtual private Network (VPN) and a strong antivirus programme. Teach them about the risks of using public wi-fi and encourage them to avoid oversharing any information about them online.
It’s A Wrap
Having the strength and knowledge to deal with common digital dangers that lurk around our kids can ensure that their online experience is filled with positivity and learning. While it can certainly seem overwhelming at times, it’s a lot easier to manage our kids' online activities and cyberthreats with a little proactiveness.
Remember, as a parent, it’s your duty to protect your child in the digital world just like you do in the real world. So, be prepared to learn and grow your knowledge of the digital space to make them feel more secure as they explore the world around them and learn to fend for themselves.
Identity Theft
Identity theft is quite common and easy in the online world. When children post their information such as pictures and familial information online, cyber criminals can use this material to forge a fake identity. They can make fake accounts, hack into your child’s account, and pretend to be your child, fooling people that you know for monetary or other gains.
How To Combat Identity Theft?
Online identity theft can be scary and leave your children worried. However by using a paid or free antivirus download program and password management system, identity theft can be curbed to some degree. Once you’ve got some digital tools in the bag to stop the practice, teach your children to keep their personal identity and sensitive information private.
Excessive Screen Time
While it’s not an external danger per se, excessive screen time continues to be a big issue among kids who not only weaken their eyesight by continuously looking at digital screens but also face many negative consequences in terms of their physical and mental health by continuing to engage in the online world without taking frequent breaks.
How To Combat Excessive Screen Time?
Use a parental control app to set time limits and monitor your child’s online activity. You can also make family time a part of your routine to keep your children away from screens. They must also be taught not to use phones and other electronic devices in the bedroom and make time for play. If you want to keep them engaged for long periods of time, help your child discover some hobbies and make time for those activities.
Unsafe Private Information
Kids aren’t as careful about keeping their personal information private as adults are. They can leave their social media accounts unaccessed, share their personal information with ‘online friends’, and make it quite easy for cyber criminals to use their information by being generally careless. This private information can then be used for conducting scams and can even put their life at risk.
How To Combat Unsafe Private Information?
Help your children keep their private information safe by setting strong passwords with multi-factor authentication and using digital tools like password manager, Virtual private Network (VPN) and a strong antivirus programme. Teach them about the risks of using public wi-fi and encourage them to avoid oversharing any information about them online.
It’s A Wrap
Having the strength and knowledge to deal with common digital dangers that lurk around our kids can ensure that their online experience is filled with positivity and learning. While it can certainly seem overwhelming at times, it’s a lot easier to manage our kids' online activities and cyberthreats with a little proactiveness.
Remember, as a parent, it’s your duty to protect your child in the digital world just like you do in the real world. So, be prepared to learn and grow your knowledge of the digital space to make them feel more secure as they explore the world around them and learn to fend for themselves.
*Collaborative post
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