Kids and Teens @ Libraries

What can I do to keep my child safe?

Chat rooms are particularly popular with children and teenagers. As you can’t see the person you contact online, you have no idea if they are who they say they are. There is a risk that paedophiles or sex abusers might pose as children or teenagers, try to strike up a friendship and eventually try to persuade them to meet up. Even if an adult is honest about their age, that is no guarantee of their good intentions. They could try to strike up a friendship over a shared interest, say football, and use it to meet a child. While this is rare the consequences can be extremely serious. Children can unwittingly give away personal details such as where they live or go to school, their or your email address or even begin to trust someone they don’t know and willingly give them personal contact details.

That is why the first rule of chat rooms is NEVER to reveal any personal details that would allow someone to contact them, such as full name, address, telephone number, email address and mobile number. Encourage your child to see it like giving personal details to a stranger in the street: they would never do that; it should be the same in a chat room.

Children and teenagers should NEVER arrange to meet anyone they have met online without a responsible adult present in a public meeting place where you can all be safe.
Explain that it is good to keep your online friends online.

Internet messaging is another popular form of contact which is usually more closely associated with a network of friends. If strangers are invited in, it is easy for them to find out things about your child and his/her friends. The same safety rules apply to all these ways of making contact over the Internet: NO personal details, NO meeting up with anyone unless accompanied by an adult.

Gaming can involve communication with other gamers so the same principles apply. Children should avoid using their own name when choosing their ‘gaming name’. If your child encounters any difficulties with other gamers, you should refer to the gaming sites’ terms of service, which should clearly state ways to report violations.

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