The proliferation of smartphones and tablets has to spend more time online today than at any time during the Internet age.
According to the Pew Research Center 2012 survey that explored the use of technology among the 802 young people aged 12-17 in the United States,
- 78% teenagers now have a cell phone, and almost half (47%) of these own smartphones. This translates into 37% of all teenagers who have smartphones, against only 23% in 2011.
- One in four teens (23%) have a tablet computer, a level comparable to the adult population general.
- 95% of teenagers use the Internet
- About three in four (74%) adolescents aged 12 -. 17 say they access the Internet on mobile phones, tablets and other mobile devices, at least occasionally.
as children and adolescents back to start the new school year, it is expected that they will spend more time online. The more time they spend online, the more they are exposed to dangerous online threats such as cyberbullying, sexual predators, cyber attacks, and identity theft.
In fact, identity theft is one of the fastest crimes the US rising, and young people are the prime targets for identity theft.
according to a report Carnegie Mellon CyLab of children under 18 are 51 times more likely to be victims of identity theft as their parents!
Since children and adolescents have perfectly clean records and are more careless with the sharing of their personal information online, they are prime targets for identity theft. Once the thief gets the identity of the young, the thief can create many credit accounts using personal identifying information of the adolescent. Of course, the thief will not make any payment to the accounts. As debt accumulates and goes unnoticed, your teen's credit rating will suffer. Consequently, your teen will face immense difficulties trying to obtain student loans, buying a car, rent an apartment or open a bank account.
To reduce the risk of identity theft and other online threats, it is important for teens to be vigilant about their safety and security while surfing online.
Balancing the desire of your teen for connectivity with your desire to keep them safe is a common challenge that many parents face today. As your teenager or child returns to school this year, helping them learn how to use the Internet safely. The suggestions listed below will help you get started.
offer useful and valuable information
The best way to approach the information is to provide teenagers with great honesty, simple risk information that you know. It is essential to be clear about why you, and even the experts, consider these certain websites and online actions to be risky or dangerous. Avoid saying things like, "Just because I said," when trying to explain. This will not have much impact on adolescents.
Go to the basics of Internet security
provide an overview of what risks are involved with respect to being online. Tell your teenager or child younger than sexual predators, hackers and scammers have found the Internet to be the ideal playground for them, and it's important to know how to recognize inappropriate behavior and how to avoid .
Provide a basic code of conduct
Give your teenager a basic code of conduct when they are online. This could be something as simple as saying, "If you would not say something directly to the person's face, then do not say it online or through social media or any other means." Ask your children to connect do with 'friends' on social media sites if they know them personally.
Explain to your children that there are online adults who sometimes pretend to be teenagers, build fake profiles, and will try to connect with them in this way. Also, make sure your teen will respect the decency and the rules of common respect: to take part in cyber bullying, sexting or not other explicit behavior, and to inform them that if they share some other teens pictures they could be held responsible their actions and face prosecution.
Once it is online, it is forever
Many people do not realize that once you post something online, it can stay in line one way or form forever. Even if you decide to delete a job right away, many sites and record the information and store hackers can understand how to get to him. Other users on the sites your children use may also keep records of messages and photos of your child is sharing, simply by taking screenshots of content. As such, it is important to help your teen understand the permanent nature of the messages, photos and other information they are considering sharing online.
Keep passwords
The only private and strong people who should have access to your teen passwords are you and your teen. Tell them that this is not a good idea to share one of them with friends, even the most innocent of reasons
Also, create strong passwords using the instructions below below :.
- Make your password long -. at a minimum, there must be at least 8 characters
- Use combinations of uppercase letters case lowercase letters, numbers and symbols
- Avoid using words. could be easily guessed, such as the name of your pet, birthday, phone number, postal code, etc.
- Avoid using the same password on multiple accounts.
Do not open emails from strangers
emails come in all shapes these days. Some are so well written and designed that your teen could be induced or tricked into opening. Ask them to agree to only open emails from people they know. Everything else should be either deleted or looked through before you can open it. Also, tell them to pay attention to emails requesting them to provide their personal information.
Encourage your teen to use the privacy settings on social media
Make sure that only their friends can see personal information about them, their messages and pictures. It is a simple step that can go a long way towards their online security. In addition, they should not add "friends" someone they do not know personally.
Do not be Careless about sharing personal information
The teens are sharing more information about themselves on social media sites than ever and can be dangerous. According to the survey conducted by the Internet & American Life relatives Project802 Pew Research Center and 802 teenagers 12-17
- 91% after a photo of themselves against 79% in 06.
- 71% display their school name, up 49%.
- 71% after the town or city where they live, up 61%.
- 53% display their email address, up 29%.
- 20% view their cell phone number, compared to 2%.
As the survey shows, many teenagers share personal information about themselves on social media sites that expose issues potentially at risk of identity theft.
Make sure you let your teenager know that this sharing of any personal information must be avoided at any time on a site. If they are unsure, they should first check with you. Once hackers and cyber criminals to obtain personal information from your adolescence, it becomes very easy for them to steal their identities.
Hazardous Areas also available online
You do not want your teenager only travel in dangerous neighborhoods in the real world. The same rules should be applied when your kids are online. If a site looks trashy, harmful, pornographic or malicious in nature, your teen should avoid. If they occur on a website site or social media with less decent equipment, they should have the means to leave immediately.
Report cyberbullying
Bullying exists not only on the playing field more. Bullying through digital media or cyber bullying is a growing threat. According to a study conducted by the Research Centre cyberbullying, 52% of students reported being bullied online.
Cyberbullying is the use of digital media to harass, threaten, humiliate or embarrass another person. It can happen on Facebook, instant messages or emails.
The effects of bullying can be serious about the victims. It can lead to depression, withdrawal, anxiety, and even suicide.
Make sure you tell your children that if they are targets of cyberbullying, they must immediately notify you and the relevant authorities.
Check your own behavior
Do you practice what you preach? If you do not, then how can or should you expect your teen son or daughter to follow the rules and expectations you setting for them? Try to set a good example for your child when it comes to your online behavior. Avoid visiting inappropriate and potentially dangerous sites. Not freely share private information and private photos online.
Encourage open communication
Sometimes your teen son or daughter may itself or be in a difficult situation. Make sure they know they can talk to you about anything. If they are hurt, embarrassed or confused about something, they should be able to speak without fear of retaliation or punishment. This will help you keep an open line of communication.
Use a virtual private network
Although your teenager may follow all your rules and expectations online, using a VPN is still one of the best ways to stay safe online . VPN protects your privacy and online identity by hiding your IP address and encrypting your Internet communications.
Most schools have firewalls and safeguards that protect their students, but when your child is with friends, at a friend's house, at a public hotspot WiFi or elsewhere of Besides home they could find themselves in dangerous waters. The more you talk with them, the more positive you are with them, the better protected they will be in the digital world.
For more information and resources to help you educate your children about the importance of Internet safety, click here.
0 Komentar