In this digital world, it’s nearly impossible to keep our children off social media and the internet. Most kids and teens have social media accounts or visit different websites. Sharing or posting something on social media is good if it is shared with care.
For online safety for kids, you must talk with your child and set rules for using social media wisely.
What Is Considered Dangerous Content?
Dangerous or inappropriate content can harm your child mentally and physically. No wonder why more parents are getting interested in parental controls like the Highster mobile app or similar. To educate your kids, it’s better to know what is the dangerous content on the internet and why it is bad for kids:
- TikTok Challenges
Some viral TikTok challenges can be dangerous and promote risky behaviors like performing dangerous stunts or swallowing harmful substances. These challenges can result in severe injuries and also encourage reckless behavior for the sake of online popularity. - Pornographic Content
Pornographic content is dangerous for your kids as it can harm your child mentally and physically. It can mislead them about sex and relationships and cause behavioral issues and psychological distress. - Scamming and Financial Fraud
Scammers mostly target teens and offer exclusive rewards and gifts or use other deceptive practices. As a result, children can lose money or provide them with personal information. - Cyberbullying
Cyberbullying through social media, gaming platforms, or messaging apps can cause anxiety, depression, and even, in extreme cases, suicidal thoughts. - Hate Speech and Extremism
Content that promotes hate, violence, or extremist ideologies can indoctrinate children into the wrong beliefs and also encourage them to engage in illegal or violent activities.
How to Keep Your Kids Safe Online?
For online safety for kids, teaching privacy rules is crucial. The children should be aware of which content they can share or view online. Instead of quitting social media or phone use, it’s better to teach them online safety rules. This will not harm their self-esteem and confidence and create a relationship of trust. A parent should teach their children that:
- They can’t trust everything shared online.
- They can’t click on a link shared on social media or messaging apps.
- Children should keep their passwords a secret.
- Think before sharing any personal information with friends or with the world.
- They can’t share their full name, address, or personal phone number.
- Do not talk to a stranger on the internet.
- Ask permission before downloading any app or game.
- If you see anything bad on the internet, tell your parents about it.
- Always check the privacy settings for the apps you use. It’s important to know which people can see and contact you.
Use a Phone Monitoring App
For online safety for kids, you can use a phone monitoring app like mSpy. A phone monitoring app gives you remote access to your child’s phone without being aware of it. By tracking GPS, mSpy can help parents know their location if they are in danger. Here are some key features that can help you protect your child:
- Parents can view their social media chats.
- Manage kid’s online activity.
- Get access to their contacts and call logs.
- See whom they are messaging or sharing photos with.
- Discover all the apps, games, and photos stored on their phone.
- You can see every keystroke and even set keywords; if they type in their chats, you will get keyword alerts and much more.
Additional Tips for All the Parents
Parents should set clear rules to reduce the excessive use of gadgets, and these rules also help keep kids safe online. Here are some practical tips for setting rules:
- Do not place computers or game consoles in the bedroom.
- Set time limits for computer and phone usage.
- Keep kid’s downloads under control.
- Explain and talk about internet safety with them.
- Enable safe search on all electronic devices to restrict all adult content, videos, or images on their device.
- Encourage critical thinking. This will empower kids to analyze and evaluate every piece of information they encounter before trusting it.
Conclusion
Hope now you have understood how to explain privacy to a child for kids’ online safety. You can follow these suggested tips for protecting kids from malicious or inappropriate content. For advanced protection, install a parental control app, mSpy, on their devices and live with complete peace of mind.