Today, May 17, the International Internet Day. Taking advantage of this day we would like to talk about how the internet affects children and how to set limits at home.
We all know the benefits that the internet has brought to our lives. With just one click we can have all the information we want, and we can do things that used to be science fiction. It is a world full of possibilities that has opened up before us.
The children of today have been born in an era where the internet is already present, it is a reality. The Internet has many benefits when used in a controlled way, both in their development and in their education, at home or at school. They have games and exercises available to work on topics they have seen in class, improve the attention of hyperactive children or with special resources, entertain them, develop technological skills ...
But all of this without parental control it can bring many dangers. It is in our power to put the necessary limits so that their benefits do not become risks. Since we cannot avoid them being in contact with the internet, we must educate them so that they have clear rules and limits. It is part of their education.
Internet dangers in children
Without supervision it can lead to addicted, nervous and compulsive children. In addition, they can access material not suitable for children such as sex, drugs or violence.
The ideal is to educate them so that they can face the various threats that can be found on the internet.
How to limit your children with the internet
- When they reach an age, children begin to ask for a phone because their friends also have one. If it's still too small can you give him an old phone, where you will not be able to download anything or have access to the internet. This way you will be locatable without the risks that the internet entails.
- At home the computer must be in a visible site.
- Ideally set schedules to use both the computer, the tablet or mobile phones.
- Teach them to protect their passwords and not give them to anyone.
- Teach you not to write your age or any personal information anywhere, much less upload a photo of yourself.
- Activate security programs that exist for these cases of parental control. They automatically block access to certain content, record the content and control the time used. The main search engines already bring applications to filter content, and on mobile phones you can create different profiles to restrict which applications they can or cannot use. Below we leave you our recommendations.
- Advise him not to answer messages from strangers even if they say they are other children.
- Check your browsing history frequently.
- Report any suspicious situation to the police.
Recommended tools for parental control
We advise you on some tools that can facilitate the work of supervision.
- Qustodio. Filter pages and words to protect them from inappropriate content. You can create as many profiles as you want for each child. It also controls the access time to the internet and to each device, your online friends, the most used applications ... one of the most sophisticated and easy-to-use parental control tools.
- ESET Parental Control. Explain to the children what they can do. Establish time limits for use, let you see where the child is at all times, you can see the content they visit ...
- SocialShield. If you are concerned about your child's use of social media, this is the tool you need. With it you can regulate and monitor your child's activity in real time.
- Mobile Fence. This tool has multiple used. In addition to the usual blocking applications and web pages, and time limitation, it is also useful to block functions such as camera, WiFi, calls…It is also Useful for monitoring potential intimidating messages. If a message with a certain word is received, parents receive a notice.
Why remember ... The ideal more than spying on them is to educate them to make a responsible use, teaching them the dangers it can bring and how to detect them.