It's back to school time again. Ah the memories… some good, some bad. The worst for me was dealing with the jerks who wanted to ruin your day.
Well, nowadays those jerks aren't just at school. Yes, they can be near - or far, far away... anywhere there's internet service.
Cell phones with internet access put kids in touch not only with the bully down the hall, but also a sociopath in Eastern Europe, or a creepy adult in town.
Have "the Talk"
Yes, cell phones are a great way for parents to keep in touch with their children before, during, and after school. But it's important to have a conversation with kids about potential risks.
Tips from the FBI
Here are six tips offered by the FBI to help keep your child safe on his or her cell phone. And for readers without kids, some of these tips apply equally to you. We're all more vulnerable online if we're not proactive about security and privacy.
- Parents should know every password to every device, and every password to every app on that device. Parents pay the bill, and as long as that child is a minor, he or she is your responsibility. You should be able to login to all devices, sites, and services to check for safety issues.
- Check all accounts for disturbing content. You and your kids should have a non-negotiable understanding that your access is a requirement for continued cell phone use.
- Learn about how photos are geotagged. Do you want just anybody to know what school your child goes to or what field his team uses for soccer practice? You should be able to turn this feature off in settings. Here's a related link for changing geotagging settings for iPhone and iPads:
https://www.techbout.com/turn-off-geotagging-for-photos-iphone-ipad-8738/ - Teach your kids to never respond to calls, texts, or emails from unknown numbers or people. Scam artists and predators will victimize anyone, regardless of age.
- Talk to your kids about what constitutes appropriate language and photos. One sexually explicit photo can change a life forever. It is crucial that your kids understand that just because something starts out as a private communication between two people does not mean that it can't be shared with thousands of people in seconds.
- Teach your children to program the privacy settings on social media feeds to the highest level and to reject any "friend requests" from those they don't know and trust in a face-to-face relationship. Parents should also consider forbidding any new "friend requests" by their kids, without parent approval. Here's a link with info on Facebook privacy settings:
https://www.facebook.com/help/325807937506242/
Thanks for reading!
-Sam
