Description:
1. Place the computer in a well-trafficked area in the home where the whole family can use it, rather than out of sight in a bedroom. The computer should be set up where it is easy for parents to see the screen and monitor behaviour.
2. Talk with your children to agree what kind of sites they are allowed to visit. Then check to make sure that they stay within these agreed limits.
3. Keep your children out of unmonitored chat rooms. The best Internet filtering software blocks access to all chat to keep children safe from the threat of dangerous persons, masquerading as kids.
4. Become familiar with the quality family-friendly and kid-friendly sites on the Web. Load your computer with bookmarks to those sites, such as: * http://www.yahooligans.com * http://www.alfy.com * http://www.timeforkids.com
5. Chat sites are a great way to meet people online and can be lots of fun. But they are open to misuse, so make sure your children are as cautious of strangers online as they would be in the outside world. Tell your children if they receive any obscene, abusive or threatening messages, they shouldn't respond, but to let you know, and you should consider telling your Internet service provider.
6. Monitor your child's use of chat rooms and keep them out of those that are unmonitored. As children can be under threat from dangerous persons masquerading as kids in chat rooms.
7. Inform your child that whatever they are told online may or may not be true.
8. Take advantage of the filtering software readily available in the marketplace. It can help block access to inappropriate sites related to sex, drugs/alcohol, hate/violence, gambling etc and even chat.
9. Find out what computer safeguards are utilized by your child's school, the public library, and at the homes of your child's friends. These are all places, outside your normal supervision, where your child could encounter an online predator.
10. Know your child's e-mail password and tell them to inform you immediately about troubling, unsolicited e-mail. Make sure they understand it is not necessarily their fault if such e-mail arrives.
11. Let your child know that you are there to talk anytime, about anything they come across that may cause discomfort.
12. Instruct your child to never do any of the following without your permission: * Never to arrange a face-to-face meeting with someone they meet online. If you do give permission, be sure that the meeting is in a public place and that you or another responsible adult accompany your child. * Never to give out personal information such as their name, age, home address, school name or location, telephone numbers or financial information. * Never to download pictures from an unknown source, as there is a good chance there could be sexually explicit images. * Never to upload pictures of themselves on to the Internet or online service to people they do not know personally.
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