The Internet is a place for adults and children to work, play and learn. We should also be concerned about the risks we face while being online. The challenge is to stay “one-click” ahead of would-be pornographers, hackers, child predators, and anyone who would misuse your and your child’s sensitive information.
TIPS FOR PARENTS
- Learn about computers so you can monitor your child’s use.
- Spend quality time with your children, reducing their dependency on computer technology for recreation, communication, and companionship.
- Keep the computer in a common area of the house.
- Don’t allow a child to give out personal information online, not real name, address, or phone number.
- Don’t allow a child to meet someone face-to-face they have met online.
- Remember that people online may not be who they seem; a “12-year-old girl” may be a “40-year-old man”.
- Though they are not foolproof, consider purchasing and installing a pornography-blocking software package.
- Periodically check the Web sites your children are visiting and look at the files they are storing.
- If you become aware of the transmission, use, or viewing of child pornography while online, immediately report this to the US Customs Cyber Smuggling Center at 1-800-BE ALERT or email [email protected].
TIPS FOR KIDS
- Do not give personal information such as your address, telephone number, parent’s work address or telephone number, or the name and location of your school.
- Tell your parents if something you come across online makes you uncomfortable.
- Never agree to get together with someone you “meet” online without your parent’s permission.
- If your parents agree to the meeting, be sure to meet only in a public place and that your parents go with you.
- Never respond to messages or bulletin board items that are suggestive, obscene, belligerent, threatening, or make you feel uncomfortable.
- Give your parents a copy of such messages and have them forward it to your Internet Service Provider.
- Never send pictures of yourself or any other personal material to a friend you meet online without telling your parents first.
- Follow the rules that your parents set for your online activities.
- There are places on the Internet that are for adults only. If you find yourself in one of those areas, LEAVE and go to one of the cool places on the Internet for kids.
- Don’t give personal information about your family situation, school, telephone number, or address.
- When chatting in chat rooms, remember that not everyone is who they say they are; for example, a person who says “she” is a 14-year-old girl from New York may be a 42-year-old man from California.
- If someone harasses you online, says anything inappropriate, or does anything that makes you feel uncomfortable, tell your parents right away.