How To Teach Your Children To Interact With Strangers Online by ZoneAlarm
It’s inevitable: Your child probably will be approached by a stranger online. So how do you help him/her prepare?
Teach Them The Definition of A Stranger
One of the most important things you can do to educate your children about interacting with strangers online is defining exactly what “stranger” is and means. Tell your kids that a “stranger” is someone they don’t know well–or, if you really want to restrict the boundaries, perhaps for a very young child–tell him/her that a stranger is anyone outside of his/her immediate family. Emphasize that strangers can be people that the child sees everyday–mailmen, school bus drivers, etc. Also emphasize that these people don’t all mean harm, but that the child should do his/her best to stay clear if they’re not friends. For online purposes, since identities are much harder to prove or reveal, a “stranger” is anyone that a parent doesn’t define otherwise. Make sure your child knows your screenname, her own screenname, and the usernames of grandparents, aunts and uncles, siblings, etc.–most of all, what a screenname actually is. If your child can’t remember all these, post them in a list near the computer.
Define the Limits of Conversation
Once your child knows who or what a “stranger” is, make sure to outline a set of acceptable conversation topics should he/she come across one online. Remind your child not to give out personal information–phone numbers, her real name, addresses, name of her school–to anyone online. Definite inappropriate conversations. It’s best to tell your child not to interact with these people at all, but in case they forget, or are lured in somehow, identifying “red flags” in online speech can help her shut down the conversation right away. And tell your child not to fill out forms online, either.
What to learn more? Read the full article at:
http://blog.zonealarm.com/2011/04/how-to-teach-your-children-to-interact-with-strangers-online.html
For complete internet security try ZoneAlarm
http://www.zonealarm.com.au/
It’s inevitable: Your child probably will be approached by a stranger online. So how do you help him/her prepare?
Teach Them The Definition of A Stranger
One of the most important things you can do to educate your children about interacting with strangers online is defining exactly what “stranger” is and means. Tell your kids that a “stranger” is someone they don’t know well–or, if you really want to restrict the boundaries, perhaps for a very young child–tell him/her that a stranger is anyone outside of his/her immediate family. Emphasize that strangers can be people that the child sees everyday–mailmen, school bus drivers, etc. Also emphasize that these people don’t all mean harm, but that the child should do his/her best to stay clear if they’re not friends. For online purposes, since identities are much harder to prove or reveal, a “stranger” is anyone that a parent doesn’t define otherwise. Make sure your child knows your screenname, her own screenname, and the usernames of grandparents, aunts and uncles, siblings, etc.–most of all, what a screenname actually is. If your child can’t remember all these, post them in a list near the computer.
Define the Limits of Conversation
Once your child knows who or what a “stranger” is, make sure to outline a set of acceptable conversation topics should he/she come across one online. Remind your child not to give out personal information–phone numbers, her real name, addresses, name of her school–to anyone online. Definite inappropriate conversations. It’s best to tell your child not to interact with these people at all, but in case they forget, or are lured in somehow, identifying “red flags” in online speech can help her shut down the conversation right away. And tell your child not to fill out forms online, either.
What to learn more? Read the full article at:
http://blog.zonealarm.com/2011/04/how-to-teach-your-children-to-interact-with-strangers-online.html
For complete internet security try ZoneAlarm
http://www.zonealarm.com.au/
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