Online Safety Tips
  Here are a few online safety tips regarding protecting you and your youngsters and teens from predators online and keeping personal information private. The Internet has changed how sexual predators can contact and then lure our young people into dangerous situations. We can't see or hear the person we communicate with...we can be anonymous. Socializing online can be fun and connect with friends and family but also risks exposure to people with criminal intentions.
There ARE things parents and guardians can do: From an article on Oprah.com, a former Canadian police sergeant (Rob Nickel), who works to catch online predators, gives some online safety tips: - It can happen to anyone - contact by a predator.
Kids trust everyone, and even straight-A kids who never get into trouble can become a victim to a child predator. It’s important to teach your kids to be street smart. - Predators are patient.
They have a ‘grooming process’ to build that bond online. They do what it takes to find a child, build their trust online, to establish a bond with them, and then will travel anywhere. It may take up to a year to build that bond. It’s EASY TO BUILD A BOND ONLINE because all you have to judge someone is by the text they type. It’s not like face-to-face where voice inflection (93%), body language, mannerisms, etc. tell you about the person. - Be cautious about sharing pictures of your infants and small children on the Internet. Set security settings so only family and friends can view them.
- Install safety software on your computers.
-- For filtering and blocking - programs like KidInnovation.com and Net.Nanny.com or equivalent.
-- For monitoring, programs like GoMcGruff.com or SpectorSoft.com or equivalent. New software is always coming out with new features, so shop around!
 General Tips for Socializing Safely Online: - Do not answer web site quizzes that have you share personal information
- Never post your phone number, address where it can be made public.
- Sit down and review online safety tips together and why they're important
- Review and use privacy settings and if you don't understand them then keep them closed and restrict access.
- If possible, create a unique username that does not reveal your entire first and last names.
- Log out completely of any social networking site when you are not using it. Use different log-ins for different sites and not use the same one for all of them.
- Change your passwords frequently, yearly. Have a different password for shopping and one for banking.
- Do not use the same password for social networking sites that you use for online banking or email accounts.
- Be careful about clicking on links on the social web sites because they might lead to malicious code or spyware installation on your computer.
- Keep your computer defenses updated such as updated anti-virus, firewall, anti-sypware, and operating system updates.
- Never open email attachments or videos unless you are absolutely sure of its origin.
 "The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unwanted Pregnancy" has several tips for you to help keep your teens savvy online: - Know who your teens are hanging out with on the phone, and online. Some parents want to know who their kids are with, and where they are going, approach computers and cell phones with the same attitude.
- Sit down and talk to your teens about the effects of a nude or semi-nude photo. It’s a conversation worth having.
- Never assume anything you send or post is private. Anything you post or send will never truly go away.
- Never give in to pressure to do anything that makes you feel uncomfortable, even online.
-- Thanks for visiting my Online Safety Tips page! --
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