The birth of the information age and the people that were born alongside it were immediately thrust into a limitless world of endless possibilities with the online world becoming as widespread and powerful as it is today. Children today are becoming instantly injected into the cyber world, and know it far better than many adults do today. Children are, however, still highly vulnerable to all manner of online predatory parties, no matter how well they know their way around social media and entertainment websites. Here are some valuable tips for achieving the greatest online security possible.

Keep any Personal Information Private

Signup or registration pages – which are actually phishing scams – are one of the most effective ways of deceiving the innocent mind. Children will only too happily provide a website with their home address, telephone numbers, and other biographical information needed to hack into their lives. Children will also unwittingly provide their parents’ financial information, resulting in massive theft before a card can be blocked.

For this reason, it is essential that children be educated on the dangers of posting private information. They need to know that even the most seemingly trustworthy websites can in fact be scams. There are, however, various internet security programs which can be installed, which will verify the legitimacy of any website being accessed.

Being Respectful

Children will be exposed to all manner of alien cultures, opinions, and phenomena in general, which may not be congruent with their often limited perceptions and mind-sets. This can easily result in them posting inflammatory or offensive comments on people’s posts, which may end them up in trouble with school authorities.

This is an excellent opportunity to broaden children’s cultural horizons – being a great education on diversity if a parent is present to guide them through the flood of foreign stimulus and information that the world’s internet users continue to post. With unlimited internet Canada, children now have unparalleled access to the internet, and can now stream, download, and investigate new and enticing media, news, and opinions like never before. Guidance is essential in this respect.

Posting Personal Photos and Videos

The internet is, unfortunately, brimming with unsavoury characters just waiting for children to provide an intimate preview of themselves and their lives. Children need to be very careful when posting photos of themselves online, as they may be downloaded and used for any manner of sinister means.

Parents need to decide if their children are mature enough to be using social media services such as Instagram or Facebook, which involve a rather comprehensive and direct compilation of a child’s life. Certain kinds of photos need to be filtered, and children should know not to put up anything too personal.

Avoiding Strangers

With regards to social media, another scary possibility is that of a predator befriending a child on something like Facebook. Many criminals will create fake profiles, pretending to be a child themselves, using an uncanny amount of photographs and information to create a convincing persona.

For this reason, children must never add someone as a friend unless they have previously met them and can confirm that the person is real. Although Facebook has heightened its efforts towards erasing fake and predatory profiles, awareness and discretion are still essential insights that children need when navigating social media.