How to Keep Kids Safe on the Internet at Every Age

Feb. 11 is Safer Internet Day (SID), a project that aims to make the Web a better place for everyone. And it's not just your high schooler you have to worry about when it comes to Internet safety. Here are some top tips to keep kids of all ages — from toddlers to teens — safe on the Web. Don't worry, no fancy computer knowledge necessary.

Toddlers and Pre-Schoolers. Studies show that children are starting to use the Internet as young as 2, usually through a parent’s phone or tablet, so setting ground rules early on is essential. “We think that one of the most important things that you can do is to teach your kids to ask you if they can go online,” Caroline Knorr, parenting editor for Common Sense Media, a non-profit that studies the effects that media and technology have on young users, tells Yahoo Shine. Parents should also spend time with their little ones while they’re on the Internet to monitor their activity and teach them how to be “ad-savvy” (being able to differentiate between a website and an advertisement). Habits are formed very early on in a child’s development, so Knorr recommends putting limits on media usage from the very beginning, since, as any modern-day parent will tell you, online engagement only increases as kids get older.

Elementary School Kids. Around the time that kids first learn to read is when they also start becoming more independent in their online interactions. While some autonomy on the Internet is OK at this age, it’s important for moms and dads to still be involved in their child’s online life. For one, parents should create a “white list” of pre-approved websites within browsers or operating systems. Controlling which apps kids download is also crucial. “All of the descriptions for apps are from the developers so we really advocate for parents to find independent reviews,” Knorr says. Take, for example, the recent Plastic Surgery for Barbie app that was recommended for children. It was actually incredibly inappropriate and was eventually removed from iTunes and Google Play following a successful petition. 

Pre-Teens and High Schoolers. These days, social networking and online chatting becomes a major part of a child’s life around age 12, so first things first: Start instilling in your child well before that to never to reveal personal, identifiable information. And make sure she knows she needs to tell you about any bad behavior she encounters, like someone asking personal questions, suggesting that a group chat should move to a private conversation, or proposing an offline meetup. As kids mature, it gets more difficult to track Internet activity, especially on sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat, so make sure to review privacy settings and ensure that they’re enabled on your child’s account. As for becoming their Facebook "friend" yourself, while keeping an eye on what your children are posting about themselves seems like a great idea, if they're horrified by the notion, they'll probably find a way around having mom in their social network. Kids are really good at changing their identities and creating false personas, so it’s never a fail-proof method for monitoring.

Another important tip: Everyone on their network should be someone that your child knows personally, Knorr suggests. And at this age it's also important to think twice before posting, because that sexy selfie can come back to bite them, no matter how innocent they think it is. “Kids need to know that they’re in charge of their own personal privacy and their reputation,” she says. “There’s no magic eraser button.”  One suggestion is to look for examples in the media that may be cautionary tales to your kids, such as a teen idol getting in trouble for making an unflattering photo public.

Everyone.
Watching over every move that your kids make on the Web is impossible, but remember to be a good role model. If you’re always on your phone, or if you text when your drive, kids mimic that behavior. “You need to show your kids that the online world really isn’t the most important,” Knorr says. Set up no-text zones throughout your home, ban phones at the dinner table, and make device-free family time a priority. Oh, and stop updating your status, uploading photos to Instagram, and live-tweeting all of your experiences for a little while yourself and take some time to see the real world around you. It’s kind of a cool place.