Your children shouldn’t be the Internet experts in your home – you should be!
My 14 year old nephew was over the other day using one of my computers on the home network. I worry sometimes about all the problems that children can get into using the Internet, whether it’s in chat rooms or on web sites we might say are “inappropriate” for teenagers. I don’t think my nephew is doing anything on the Internet like this – yet! I wanted to make sure I showed my nephew that his father has the ability to keep track of where he has been on the Internet. Now his father isn’t the most experienced when it comes to using the Internet and computers, but what I showed him isn’t complicated at all and anyone can do it.
While my nephew was using the computer, I went to my router to open up the outgoing log file which I have activated on my router. I asked my nephew to take a look at the log and I explained to him that this was all of the websites that have been visited by people using that computer while surfing on the Internet. He never realized that you can find out (very easily) what web sites have been visited on a computer. I then casually “mentioned” to him that his father can also do the same thing on his home computer.
My point is this - I strongly believe it is very important for parents of children to be educated about the Internet. Computers aren’t all that complicated, and there are many resources available on line that explains in plain terms how to make your computer safe for your children. As children get older they begin to get more and more curios about things. The Internet is a place where a curious, inexperienced child can get into trouble with predators on MySpace or in a chat room. Don’t forget that teenagers are often curious about sex so all the easily accessible Internet Porn sites might be places they want to visit.
Take the time and educate yourself about your computer and the Internet. You don’t have to be a computer whiz to be able to monitor your children’s Internet activity or to install proper Internet protection tools for children. This doesn’t mean you’ll be able to protect your children from all the dangers on the Internet, but it certainly will be a positive step towards safe Internet surfing.
January 15th, 2007 at 10:44 am
[...] The Internet can be a great tool for a child. It opens up access to the world that few of us were offered as children. However, there are things on the Internet you don’t want your child to access such as inappropriate text and images. They can also inadvertently reveal personal information such as their name, address, phone number, or even your credit card number. So as wonderful as the Internet is, you must take steps to protect children while they are on it.The Internet is just like anything else in life – the first line of defense starts with you. Just as you teach children to look both ways before crossing the street, you need to teach children to be careful on the Internet. Guide them to sites they will enjoy that are age appropriate. Supervise and limit their time online and show them you are an expert with the computer. [...]