3 Basic Ways To Help Keep Your Child Internet Safe

These days, as a parent, it’s often the case that your children know more about the internet and computers than you do. But it’s still your duty as a parent or guardian to protect their experiences online, keep your child internet safe. While there is legislation in place that requires children to get a parents permission before giving out sensitive information like address and phone number, among other things. But that doesn’t always happen – so just as with pretty much everything else with your child – it doesn’t hurt to be proactive.

What follows is some basic advice for making sure that the internet experience of your younger child is safe and secure (and they don’t inadvertently end up charging your credit cards a ton of money).

Become Computer Literate Yourself

It is still your job as a parent to make sure that your child’s experience online is safe and secure – but how can you do that if your kid needs to show you how to change the internet settings on your computer? If you aren’t too tech-savvy, enroll in a class at the local community college or high school. You’re going to want to make sure you are able to know how to:

  • Set up a separate “profile” on your computer for each child, with only you as an administrator
  • Manage and block websites that your child has access to

While younger children generally will not try and find ways around your internet restrictions, as children get older, they might attempt to get beyond your restrictions if they find them unfair – for example, if you don’t allow them to set up any social media profiles (Facebook, Twitter, myspace, etc) or use chat-rooms. So be prepared to enforce and defend your decisions – which is where our second piece of advice comes in handy.

Educate Your Children About The Dangers

The internet is not a safe place – not intrinsically. Sensitive data is not always secure and once something is posted on the internet it’s always going to be there – even if the profile or image is deleted.

Some basic ground rules and dangers to warn your children about might include:

  • Never complete an online profile – don’t give out address, phone number, photos or even their real name.
  • Warn children of people who contact them and and interested in meeting face-to-face.
  • Make sure they know they can (and should) talk to you if anything happens on the internet that makes them feel uncomfortable.

Get Involved

You’re going to want to get involved with your child’s internet experience to make sure that things are safe. Especially with younger children, there are definitely things that may seem innocent to them that may not actually be. Some guidelines for getting involved in your child’s internet experience include:

  • Keeping the computer in a common area.
  • Share an email account with your child – or make sure that you have the password to their email account to monitor for unsolicited emails.
  • Bookmark your child’s favorite sites for easy access.
  • Monitor credit cards and phone bills for unfamiliar charges.
  • Disable “cookies” so that a child can’t inadvertently process a credit card charge because all the necessary data is already stored.

These are some of the most basic things you could (and should) be doing to keep your child and your child’s identity safe on the internet – this is the “don’t take candy from strangers” lesson for the digital era, and you want your children to understand it without having to learn it the hard way.

Alison Waters is a freelance writer who works with a company that offers IT project management and hardware support – so that if you’re a small business owner and your kid inadvertently pulls all the plugs, they could still recover your data. She hopes that no child is the target of an internet predator.

Ensure Kids’ Safety in School against Offenders

Children in schools face different types of risks. Once the parents drop off their children to school, the local education authority, the teacher, and the school’s administration have the responsibility for their kids’ safety. However, there are also other agencies who can contribute to ensure security such as the fire and police departments, the equipment suppliers, maintenance companies, insurers and social services.

Wellbeing as the School’s Major Responsibility

Image Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/loop_oh/3176885291/

The main security concerns prioritised by schools include the safety of schoolchildren, staff as well as the visitors. Other concerns are those including intrusion of trespassers within the premises, arson, theft and vandalism.

One of the most important aspects for protecting children is placing schools in the position to promote and safeguard the rights and welfare of the children. This means to shield children from any forms of maltreatment, prevent harm on their health and development, and make sure that they are thriving in favourable conditions which are consistent to a healthy growth.

Children’s Security and Safety

The school has the responsibility to children by taking necessary steps to ensure that they do not suffer injury within the school premises. This must be taken into consideration when installing security measures in place. There should be a balance between reinforcing security and allowing the children freedom with putting them at risk.

Installing Fences for Protection

Image Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/meddygarnet/3426853721/

In installing fences, the fence should be able to protect children from intruders and at the same time, safe enough as not to pose any harm to children playing near it. For instance, the fence should come with anti-climb and anti-cut features so that both intruders and children cannot pass through easily.

The fences should also be durable enough to withstand attempts from intruders to break in and from children playing close by. This is especially true when the fences are installed in the play area or in the school yard. While children are enjoying the warm sun, they are also prone and vulnerable to trespassers and offenders who might be lurking nearby.

Aside from safety measures, precautionary steps should also be taken. Warning signs should be installed to let people know what they should and shouldn’t do. Such signs must not only be understandable by adults but by children as well.

Use of Reasonable Force against Trespassers

School authorities are allowed to use reasonable force to stop and detain those who trespass and those who cause concern to the individuals inside the school. The school staff can do this to offenders or suspected offenders. Arrests can be made even without warrant to those who have committed an “arrestable offence” such as breaking in and trespassing unlawfully.

If the school authority deems it necessary, they can arrest and detain unwanted visitors, as long as there are reasonable circumstances behind this action. On the other and, this will also create a risk on the part of the school authorities when they implement this rule. Therefore, the school should also be aware of its duties and responsibilities to the children and the employees to prevent any harm.

Safe Site Facilities provide security measures, such as steel screens and temporary fencing for a wide range of premises including schools.

Why Parents Need To Be Careful About Children Watching TV

Most parents are acutely aware of the problems that can result from an over-reliance on the television. Young children can be greatly entertained and intellectually stimulated by the TV, of course, but there’s always a balancing act to be performed. Watching it for too long can harm a child’s development, so it’s always advisable to err on the side of caution.

Children’s TV schedules reveal a healthy smattering of fun-based informative shows, so the youngsters can watch, learn and develop at the same time. However, the networks also incorporate a huge number of cartoons into their listings as well, and this is where problems can occur, both in the short and long terms.

A few cartoons here and there aren’t a problem, of course, and will allow the children to enjoy a little escapism from time to time. However, some parents find it difficult to stop their children from watching TV for hours at a time, and that can lead to significant issues for kids of all ages.

Some of the cartoons are rather too violent for some parents’ liking, so some sort of embargo could be the answer. However, because of the sheer number of channels that are available these days, it’s often difficult to police exactly what the children may be watching. Of course, most cartoon shows are relatively short, so if a parent leaves the room for ten minutes or so it could be too late to make a difference.

What to watch? When to watch?

As children get older, there is often some friction among the family members in regard to what to watch on TV. In the evenings, when work and school commitments are all done for the day, the prospect of three or more people all arguing about viewing arrangements can lead to some serious disagreements.

One solution is to purchase a television for the children’s bedroom or bedrooms. Most youngsters eventually get a set for their rooms, of course, but there is plenty of debate about which is the right age for this to happen. As you might expect, there is no right or wrong answer, and every parent will have their own idea about when the right time would be.

One thing is certain – there is a time when it’s simply too early. Every parent should bear in mind what they were like at that age. If a child has a ready-made opportunity to sit at home and watch television all day long, the chances are that he or she will do just that. It’s far better to leave the ‘TV in the room scenario’ for a few years at least.

There is an enormous selection of TVs on the market these days, so it pays to do a little research before parting with any cash. One major consideration is the size of the screen, because if it’s too large it will dominate the room and could lead to eyesight problems in later life. Thankfully, the choice in stores and on the web is impressive, so the parent should always have a good look around before buying.

 

David Rice is a UK parent who knows how difficult it can be to raise children. He works in the Birmingham car hire business, where he specialises in finding the best car rental Birmingham has to offer.

Cautious Kids

Some of the most important lessons we can teach our young ones are safety guidelines and how to approach dangerous situations when unattended. When children approach the age of 3 years they become very impressionable and are suitable for learning some important life lessons. This is the idea time to start teaching them some basic safety rules.

Hazards at Home

Hazards involving intense heat can cause many injuries to children every year, this is often because they are unaware of all potential dangers in their own home. Hazards such as a boiling kettle, hot radiators, lit ovens and fireplaces can all cause injuries to unsuspecting children. Little ones are particularly explorative when unsupervised to be sure they have a safe area to play in when they are left with time to themselves. Putting safety measures in place around your home is a good way of reducing the risk of children getting injured, but teaching them to be cautious themselves is an invaluable lesson that could make a large difference when they stumble across a shiny hazard without parental supervision.

Travelling Alone and Dealing With Strangers

As children reach the age in which they go to play with friends and make short journeys to and from nearby houses and shops, it’s vital that they know the importance of travelling safely and not to engage in conversation with any unfamiliar faces. Ensure they have a safe route to all destinations and remain in public view the entire time. If possible they should travel with groups of their friends to ensure they are not alone while travelling home.

The potential danger involved with a child engaging strangers is something no parent wants to think about, but ensuring your child knows when someone is clearly bad news can make a huge difference in the way they approach strangers.

Environmental Hazards

As children grown older and are approaching high school, they are always more likely to travel further out to play with friends, ride bikes and play sports, but there are important lessons they must learn about environmental hazards. An unsupervised reservoir may seem like an idea place to play and swim to a group of children, if they are uneducated on this topic they may be unaware of generally how difficult it becomes to clamber back out again once wet.

Pylons may appear to be giant climbing frames with which to play and show off to friends, but children may not know about the tens of thousands of volts flowing through the pylons electrical system. It is vital that children learn lessons such as these at a young age; a sensible child is much more likely to stay safe when left alone and can have a positive impact on their more troublesome friends.

Written by Daniel Travis – Brown on behalf of Gray & Co Criminal Defence Solicitors , follow him on Twitter @DanTravisBrown

International Child Abuse Club Busted and Cooked Babies in the News

Casey Anthony has been booked into the Orange ...
Image via Wikipedia

With talk of the Casey Anthony case plastered all over the news and search results, it can be difficult to weed through the drama and find updates on real news concerning cases of child abuse, neglect and murder. Unfortunately, there are definitely more horrifying things going on right now than a drawn-out suspected murder case that everyone is tired of hearing about.

For instance, a sickening case of international child abuse was recently uncovered. As of today, August 3, 2011, a group of at least 72 identified individuals, including 43 from the United States, are being charged for circulating pictures and participating in an online forum used to promote child abuse and rape. The investigation is still ongoing, and it originally targeted 600 private members of this twisted, international child abuse network.

Participants in the network attempted to conceal their identities and locations by using proxy servers – unfortunately, authorities are unable to fully identify some of the participants, and now only have their user names with which to work.

However, it is now known that members were spread across at least 13 different countries, including France, Germany and Switzerland. So far, there have only been 43 arrests made in the United States, and a total of 9 spread across the rest of the 13 countries.

There were different levels of membership to the forum, including a “Super VIP” section that required participants to maintain their status by consistently uploading pictures and other content depicting children they had molested and physically abused. While the thought of such a large-scale child abuse operation is horrifying enough, some of the children posted on the forum were infants.

On a lesser scale, but just as sickening, a California mother is involved in an ongoing trial for allegedly trying to cook her baby in the microwave.

The case was opened in March, and the woman is now scheduled for an August 26 hearing that will determine if she is guilty of murdering her 6-week-old infant in a microwave. Although the proceedings are currently on hold due to lack of evidence, the injuries that killed the infant girl have already been identified as microwave burns.

According Ka Yang’s attorney, Linda Parisi, she may be suffering from psychological problems. In any event, the child was found in the suspect’s home already dead from the burns she sustained. The mother has already been charged with one count of murder due to the intentional and involved torture.

By Jacob Maslow.

Despite having five children, Jacob finds the time to be the editor of Rapid News Network and Marketing Director for a large ecommerce company that sells various items including allergy bedding and the popular Melissa and Doug toys

  • Why Sports Should Be Part of Every Kid’s Life (fryingpansports.com)
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Who is Sending Emails to Your Youngster?

Who is Sending Emails to Your Youngster?

The World Wide Web is truly fascinating nowadays. Using the internet your youngster can look for information for any school project, homework or research paper. It’s a new world of knowledge opened up for the children, something which has no parallel. Certainly this is also a preferred manner for your youngster to remain in contact with his pals and find new friendship. With communal networking websites such as Zubby, MySpace and Friendster, your youngster can remain in contact with all his pals and enjoy doing so.

Friendster
Friendster (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In effect, social networking websites are extremely fashionable with children. Emailing is yet another manner of remaining in contact with pals and relatives who live away. Nonetheless the varied advantages of the World Wide Web also come with a large number of hazards. Kids communicate with unknown persons. There are sometimes killers who are online and are on the look-out for kids to talk to. So even though your youngster may be under the impression that he/she is conversing with another boy like him from a different state, he may in fact be chatting with an elderly person living right near you home.

Thinking about these circumstances and ideas is very frightening, but this happens often. The more information you have, the easier it is to prioritize the well-being of your kid. In case your kid is receiving weird emails or is chatting online with a person whom you are not familiar with, it would be worthwhile to find out. You can speak to your kid and get details about when and how they started chatting. Killers very often are on the look-out for children with low self-confident and self-worth. This is one of the manners using which they ensnare the child; they try to win the child’s trust and then abuse that confidence.

Fortunately there are many recent sites, from where you can determine the person sending emails to your kid. All you need to do is input the email of the concerned person. You do not require their name, Social Security number or contact details. By entering their email you can get their name, address, telephone number and other records pertaining to the person’s background/character. These records are very useful since they have information about the arrest warrants at state and federal levels. They also have information about any misbehavior or charges that the concerned person may have been convicted for and if there are any sexual offences.

Being a parent is the toughest of all jobs, although the most excellent and gratifying one. Be active in the child’s life, especially with what he does on the internet and find out doubtful persons as soon as you can to avoid getting your child trapped with a really harmful person.