teach your kids to be responsible on the internet

I know this is something we have to keep a close eye on when it comes to our kids. Especially the slightly younger ones that are just getting in to things such as the internet and social media.   There are things they are not aware of.

Every time kids go online, they leave a footprint. Every action performed on the internet has a record.  All the websites that they visit can be traced. The photos uploaded on social media stay there even after deletion. The internet is a public place which means anything can be used in any way. This trail they leave behind on the internet is called a digital footprint. Kids do all sorts of activities on the internet; Social media, personal blogs, professional profiles, chat groups, gaming clans and much more. Most kids express themselves over the social media. They upload embarrassing photos of each other and also get involved in sexting. This is the new way to interact and share with the world and not having a digital footprint is impossible. However, a little caution and parental control apps can be helpful.

How can it affect kids?

There many ways digital footprint can come back to kids. Companies look for social media profiles of their candidates. They can reject their applications because of a bad reputation, inappropriate photos or expressing hate against an employer. Partners can also come across sensitive information and this can create complications between them.  If they became a victim of cyberbullying, even after a long time, it can resurface as the information is always present.

How to be responsible?

Here are 4 tips that you can teach your kids:

• Sharing – Never share sensitive or private information that may make them uncomfortable. Sometimes kids get emotional and expressing over social media seems easy but, they might regret it later. Browsing privately reduces the ad-tracking and cookies.
• Social media – Keep the profiles private and share with trusted friends only. There are some blogs which have to be public like a food or photography blog. Make sure to not share personal info on such sites.
• Be careful – Don’t go to unsafe websites or chat groups. Don’t get involved in sexting. Once anything is on the internet, it’s no longer only yours.
• Timely prevention – Another solution is the use of parental control apps. Monitor their online behavior with apps, like FamilyTime. See what websites they go to or if they are sharing anything inappropriate. Check their social media activity. Check their installed apps and see if they are using any anonymous or sexting apps. Keep a watch on their calls, texts and contacts as well. By doing so you can prevent anything that might affect them later in time.

Don’t delay this thinking it won’t matter. It’s better to be careful and prevent trouble in time than to feel sorry later. FamilyTime can help you with that. It is available for Android and iOS devices.

Be smart and be safe!

It is very important for kids to be responsible on the internet.  Anything they do just for fun to lay off the stress of the moment can later have horrible consequences. Teach them the internet ethics and use parental control apps to keep an eye yourself and prevent any harm before it happens.