The internet can be a fun as well as educational place for our children to explore, be creative within, and find answers to all their curiosities but it can also be a dangerous place as all parents know. With Dateline catching predators on a regular basis and news stories almost daily being reported about cyberbullying, crazy teen videos, and other things as parents we really do not want to think about it can also be a dangerous place.
There are laws that protect our children as they spend time online but since the world wide web is a global environment this does not always protect them. Since many users also remain anonymous or create false identities this only complicates the issue of protecting our children. Parents should not depend solely on these laws and play an active role in their child’s use of the internet.
There are plenty of tools that parents can install on a computer that can limit where a child goes while they are online. Many internet service providers also offer additional tools so parents can also talk to them regarding their children’s safety while online. Both will give you the ability to not only control where your child goes while online but will also allow you to track their activities for a better idea of what they are doing online.
Of course the biggest tool to keeping your child safe online is to simply pay attention. Never allow children to access the internet from a computer in their room. Keep the computer in a family room and make sure you are with them while they are surfing the web. By being proactive to what your child is doing online as opposed to reactive you can better help them not only be safe on the internet but also enjoy it as well.
Julia Howard
www.amberalertgps.com
Creators of aagps child locator technology
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Hello,
Thanks for article. Everytime like to read you.
Have a nice day
Robor
Comment by Robor — April 12, 2009 @ 2:21 pm
Anyone who watches the evening news has seen those grainy shopping mall videos that tell the horrific story of a young child lured away by a predator, leaving another family destroyed. You hope and pray the family will be among the lucky ones who see their child again, alive and unharmed. Too often, however, that’s not the case. Many times the kidnapping occurs after the young child wanders away from a parent or other family member for just a precious few seconds…but just enough time for the kidnapper to make his move.
Today no family should have to go through this agony, due to numerous protective devices on the market; one of them is Child Guard, a remote monitoring system. Child Guard looks like a toy; it attaches to the child and provides the adult with a warning signal if the youngster strays beyond a pre-set boundary, up to 30 feet. This and many other options have been created to address an epidemic: According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in a report posted on its internet site, more than 2,000 children per day are reported missing.
Fortunately, a bright spotlight was shone on this epidemic a few years back after the abductions of Samantha Runnion, Polly Klass and Adam Walsh. Since then, the media has been much more sensitive to the subject and has covered these kinds of crimes to a much greater degree. But what the media doesn’t cover are the many “good news” stories involving responsible adults who utilize one or more of the safety devices available to them. An article you won’t read may have reported: “hundreds of tots nationwide returned safely to their homes last night after wandering away from their parents in a crowded mall, but who were sighted immediately when the children’s Child Guard sounded.”
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children is focusing on this subject 24/7. It is the leader in the fight against missing children. Working closely with the Federal Government, the NCMEC provides a 24-hour hotline for both reporting missing children and to pass along spottings of one they may have seen. It is 1-800-THE-LOST. The NCMEC recommends that you provide your children at the earliest possible age with information for them to try and memorize-–their name, where they live, their phone number, etc. Make a game out of vital information as soon as children can respond to such data and quiz them daily on it.
Some of the most obvious recommendations relate to constant vigilance. It is so tempting to let go of a child’s hand for a split second to check out a garment or to reach an item on a shelf. The sad litany of recorded kidnappings at malls and grocery stores, etc., confirms the fact that split seconds often are all that is needed for a tragedy to begin to unfold. If that child is wearing some kind of safety device, however, such as a Child Guard, and a warning sounded, no doubt the potential kidnapper would abandon the child and head for the exits. Don’t wait for the worst to happen. Investigate some of the preventive devices out there.
Take a look at Child Guard at http://www.yoursecurityandsafety.com/childguard.htm.
Comment by robert dimond — July 27, 2009 @ 7:28 am