Internet Safety Rules

To kids, it probably seems like there are unnecessary rules for everything. When it comes to the internet, though, parents need to set strict safety rules that will protect their children and their computers. Making sure that your kids understand and follow some basic internet safety rules will make it much safer for them to use the internet for emails, chats, research, shopping, and playing games.

Internet Safety Rule #1 – Don’t Talk to Strangers

Internet safety rules often reflect the rules that kids should follow in the real world. Don’t talk to strangers isn’t an exception. This includes chatting, sending emails, and using Chatroulette. If your kid doesn’t know the person in the real world, then he or she shouldn’t be allowed to communicate with them online. Your kids might complain that they know someone because they met them online. Don’t accept this. Child molesters and con men can spend months chatting with kids to get the information that they need to break the law.

Internet Safety Rule #2 – Don’t Post Pictures

Internet safety rules for your kids should include restrictions on what kind of pictures they can post online. When you look closely at pictures of your family and your children’s friends, you will see that there is a lot of revealing information in those photos. Someone could potentially learn where your house is, where your children go to school, or what your children are interested in. Even small bits of information that seem insignificant to you could help someone commit identity theft or kidnap your child.

Internet Safety Rule #3 – Don’t Post Any Personal Information

Basic internet safety rules for children and adults should limit the amount of personal information that you post online. Some common mistakes include posting phone numbers, addresses, and school names. Don’t let your child have public discussions with his or her friends on social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace. These conversations often include information about the child’s plans for the evening, which can make it easy for a predator to be there in wait.

Internet Safety Rule #4 – Don’t Visit Sites with Illicit Material

Your child already knows that you don’t want him or her visiting web sites that contain nudity, pornographic images, or other types of illicit content. That’s just common sense. What your children may not know, however, is that you have the ability to look at their internet browsing history. When explaining internet safety rules to your children, be sure to mention that you will regularly look at their browser history to see what they have been doing online.

Internet Safety Rule #5 – Never Meet with Anyone from the Internet

This is probably the most important of all the internet safety rules. Children can get the sense that they know people they have met online, but the truth is that they can never truly know who they have been talking to unless they have met them in the real world. Unfortunately, meeting someone from the internet in the real world can have disastrous consequences. Make sure your children understand that they are not to meet anyone from the internet under any circumstances. If the first four rules are followed, then number five should never even present itself as a problem. Including this on your list of internet safety rules, however, will reinforce its severity.