It’s a great big world out there, parents, and it’s never been an easy job keeping your kids safe. But the size of the real world is nothing compared to the size of cyberspace. And it can be every bit as dangerous.
The dangers don’t come from targeted attacks, like malware and viruses (though they’re out there too). The real dangers can come from the places you’re kids voluntarily go — such as social media. Predators don’t need to spend energy tracking down targets if they know where those targets will be. In Africa, the crocodiles stay near the water holes.
As such, parental social media monitoring for kids and teens can be an important tool to monitor Internet activity and maintain your children’s safety online. It can let you know who your kids are talking to, what they’re saying, and what types of media they’re sharing with — and getting from — their contacts online.
Programs exist for a wide variety of programs, including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram monitoring tools. But more important than how many monitoring tools you have is how you use them. Monitoring your kids online behind their virtual backs can certainly keep you up-to-date on their online activities, but beware of losing their trust if they ever find out. Without a doubt, social media monitoring for kids works best when the kids know they’re being monitored.
Not only does it force children to be aware of their own actions online (as well as the consequences), but it opens the channels of dialogue between parents and kids. Perhaps the child honestly didn’t know that what they did was outside the bounds of safety — now you have an opportunity to talk about it. So in reality, one of the best Internet safety tips for kids is also one of the best overall safety tips for kids: open, honest, and frank communication with their most important teacher. You. Check out this site for more.