Protect Your Kids on the Internet

Protect Your Kids on the Internet

work with them to make them responsible cybercitizens

Advertising (818) 342-7566

The Internet is a virtual reflection of the world at large. There are some wonderful places to visit, but there are also some dangerous, dark alleys. While we agree that porn sites are inappropriate for children, there are things on the Internet that are much more harmful. There are hate sites that teach intolerance and violence, there are sites that teach about guns and bomb making, and there are sites that promote smoking and drinking. Letting your child roam the Internet without your input and participation is irresponsible. You must become involved, and educate yourself about the Internet and how to advise your children on its appropriate use.

After considerable consideration, Jeff & Kris Booth both support online filters. Yes, they are clunky and they filter out a lot of content that should not be filtered out, but they are the only thing available that gives parents some control. We want the Internet to be freely accessible to adults without censorship. In order for that to continue, there must be a way for parents to control what their children access. When a site gets filtered, the child can call in an adult to check it out, and the adult can then decide whether they want their child to access that site or not.

You probably have filters available you don’t even know about. AOL has special children's and teen accounts, allowing restricted access to the Internet at large. These accounts can be set up to block access to chat rooms, refuse incoming e-mail, and trigger other safety features. You can turn on filters in Internet Explorer quite easily by using their Content Advisor. Click on Tools, then Internet Options, then the Content tab. It allows you to set filters based on nudity, language, sex, and violence. The downside is that the filter requires that sites voluntarily rate themselves (as we have with all of our pages on sexinreview.com) using the standard ICRA rating system. Sites that are not rated will also be blocked. To read our position on ICRA and what we object to about it, read Why We Use ICRA Filtering.

There are more sophisticated filters out there, and they are better than they were in the early days when they filtered out chicken breast recipes. You can find tons of them listed and rated at Get Net Wise.

A filter helps, but you also need to set down some rules and have a discussion with your kids. Here are some of the things you should discuss with them:

Keeping in touch with friends using email is great, but meeting people on the Internet can be risky. We are not just talking about meeting possible pedophiles. There are scam artists of all sorts out there. You never know who you are really dealing with when you meet someone in a chat room or via email. Make it clear that they should never arrange a meeting with someone they have only met online.

You should also make it very clear that they must never give out personal information to a stranger- no matter what. This includes giving out things like their email password to someone who claims to be from AOL. If someone wants personal information about them, including a phone number, an account number, their address, or any other personal information, even if they claim to have authority for requiring that information, have them come to you immediately and have you check it out.

We think this rule is also especially important when dealing with credit card numbers. We suggest that you not give your credit card to your kids to allow them to make online purchases. If they need to buy something online, you should input the number yourself. Credit card numbers are often used for age verification, and they are also used on Web sites for scam free trial memberships that automatically convert into monthly fees. Personally check out anything your kids plan to buy on the Internet to make sure that it is legitimate.

Another important thing to discuss is that while the Internet gives you a feeling of anonymity, you aren’t really anonymous. It is a crime to threaten, intimidate, or harass other people, and you can get into serious trouble for doing this, even if you think no one knows who you are. Even serious hackers have had a difficult time disguising their identity.

Some on the religious right have actively worked to reduce curriculum inn schools that encourages critical thinking, because they worried that it might cause children to criticize the Bible. The Internet is all about critical thinking, though. Just because a site is on the Internet does not mean that the information contained there is factual. If you plan to let your children use the Internet for research for school, you must emphasize how important it is to make sure that the source of their information is reliable. Are there other independent sources that can confirm the information? Who is responsible for the site or the article, and do they have an agenda that might distort what they write? A couple og good sites on this topic are Fact or Folly and Web Smart Kids.

We also like this list of rules to print out and give to your children: My Rules. Another good site that covers the topic of helping your guides more responsibly use the Internet is the parent’s section on Yahooligans.