Keep your children safe on the internet

Here are some tips for parents for keeping their kids safe online:

Ask your child to make use of mobile phone privacy settings (Limit Ad Tracking, etc)
Talk to your kids about what kinds of websites they can visit (Gaming, networking, etc)
Explain to them the risks of the Internet and tell them that they should come to you if they see anything that worries them.
Find advice online from experts.

See what other parents think about protecting their kids online:

How to limit ad tracking on iOS:

Open Settings, tap General and then tap restrictions. Tap Enable Restrictions and make a pin code you will remember and then find the privacy section. Tap on advertising and ensure ‘Limit Ad Tracking’ is enabled. Then tap don’t allow changes. Now, your family is less likely to be targeted by ads.

You could use an Ad Blocker on laptops and desktops to block popular ad providers from showing ads in-browser. I recommend AdBlock. But some websites may ask you to turn off AdBlock and other ad blockers. Some websites it is only optional, but with some it is a requirement to turn your adblocker off. Don’t do what those websites say and just leave them.

Types of personal information:

Advise kids not to share:

Last name, School name, name of local park, age, birthday, address, email, phone number, where their parents work, information of anyone else and other information that could be used in cases of identity theft.

Also advise your kids to tell you if they are being cyberbullied. Teach your kids to be aware of scams that can trick you into entering personal information. Kids need to be aware of block and report buttons on chat sites and blogs. Report buttons should be made easier to find and use, but not always. Sometimes they are a tiny hyperlink at the bottom of the page or you must register an account to report something.

NEVER use your real date of birth whilst signing up to something. If the site gets hacked then the hacker has the details and can use them. Use an alias as your name (eg, instead of Joe Bloggs do joegamer14, for example) and make up a fake date of birth.

For under 8s, it is best to set up a whitelist so only approved websites can be visited by the child, and they must ask permission to access any new ones.

Get your kids to try my quiz.