Your children might be spending more time on the internet than ever before now. The pandemic opened all-new ways to use the internet and distance education is one of them. During the last year and a half, children all over the world were forced to take classes online. In such unprecedented times, parents had no choice but to let children use the internet.
So, we might have solved a big problem, but it gave birth to another issue. Children who spend so much time on the internet every day for school and assignment research are not safe. There is a lot of inappropriate content and potential cyber threats that can harm your child. So, parents need to be more vigilant and also keep the ISP’s number like the Spectrum Bill Pay number on speed dial. Here are some other things that can help your children to surf the internet safely.
Managing Parental Controls and Antivirus Software
The internet is an unpredictable world and you cannot trust the online space. Your children may be exposed to a lot of inappropriate content such as violence or pornography. Moreover, there is a looming threat that they might click on a suspicious link. As a result, your kid may download ransomware or a virus on your computer.
Therefore, it is important to keep a strict eye on what your child is doing online. It can be hard to supervise every click and view so parents need to be creative. There are many antivirus software solutions that can help to keep your kids’ safety first. So, you should invest in a good antivirus before you give your child a laptop. This can keep their data and sensitive information safe online.
Moreover, there are some excellent parental control software solutions available as well. They can help you track your child’s activity online. You can set up strict surveillance over what they’re doing online and which websites they visit the most. Some of these solutions can also set up an alert for certain search keywords that you may want your child to stay away from.
Train Your Child for Internet Best Practices
One of the most important things is to talk to your children about the possible threats online. The chances are that your kids have no idea what a phishing link looks like. So, it can be great to talk to them and explain a few basics of online safety. You can train them to not click on any links and not talk to any strangers online. You might think that you have to do everything yourself, but training your children a little can help you out.
Moreover, if they know what to stay away from, you can trust them more as well. As a result, you may not have to install software to keep an eye on their every move. You can relax a little knowing that your kids understand the importance of online safety. This way, you don’t have to constantly breach their privacy by sifting through their web history.
Stranger Danger and Online Bullying
Another dark aspect of the internet is that your kids may be getting bullied online. Online bullying can be just as bad as schoolyard bullying. And most parents can ignore this without knowing. It is important that you let your child know that they can talk to you about anything. You should make sure that you make your house a safe space for your children to thrive in. It can be hard for bullied children to talk about it and it can permanently affect their personalities.
Other kids can be mean to your child on social media by leaving unnecessarily rude comments under their posts. So, you should check their posts now and then to make sure everything looks okay. Moreover, your kids also need to stay away from strangers online. Kids can be naïve and may give out sensitive and personal information to kidnappers, hackers, or pedophiles. You should warn them of stranger danger in the online space as well.
Schedule Internet Access Time and Limit
It is impossible to keep your kids away from the internet under the present circumstances. The internet is now the need of the hour so you need better control over when and how much access your kids have. Most parents in the USA can’t supervise their children all the time. So, it is best to schedule a specific time and limit to when your child has access to the internet. You can align it with when you can best monitor their online activity. As a result, you can do your best to keep them safe and also reduce screen time for them. It can be a win-win situation for everyone involved in the situation.
The limit to internet access is still in your control even with online classes. You can use child-safety firewalls and block websites from showing up in searches. It is important to identify your child’s behavior online even at the scheduled time.
