People are now relying more on technology and internet solutions to keep their children entertained and also teach them educational stuff. Even children themselves are so attached to digital devices that they cannot stop using them. While there are benefits of the internet, for children it is potentially dangerous as you never know who may be tracking their activity and collecting information about them on the internet.
As a parent, it is your job to take care of your children’s privacy on the internet because prevention is better than cure. Children and teenagers are spending increasing amounts of time on the internet and digital devices for various purposes and you should take measures to protect the privacy of your child on the internet. Here are various ways by which you can protect your child’s privacy on the internet:
Talk To Your Child About Internet Privacy
The first thing that you should do is talk to your child about it. Tell your child about online privacy and how to manage their reputation on the internet. There are various websites and apps that ask users to reveal information about themselves, from pictures to their interests and relationship status. It can be tempting to share your information on the internet but it is also important that you talk to children about internet data and privacy.
Have a detailed conversation with your child about the risks of sharing your private data on the internet. Tell your child how their information is being collected and how it could be used for various purposes. Once you make your child aware of it, he/she will take caution while sharing stuff on the internet.
Don’t Share Data With Apps
When your child downloads a social app, it will most likely ask to access the files and data stored on the phone including photos, files, documents, contacts, etc. It is better that you don’t share too much data with these apps. You never know how these apps may use your photos and videos once you give them access. Only give access to the things that you think really need access, otherwise, don’t share your private data with apps.
Enable Parental Controls
You can enable the parental controls option from the settings of your WiFi router, i.e through 10.0.0.1. Parental controls can help you filter different websites, block access to various websites, limit internet time, and pause Wi-Fi. With parental controls, you can schedule the internet to turn on and off at a certain time every day so that the internet is turned off for a certain period such as during study hours every day. You can also schedule the internet for specific devices such as your child’s laptop or tablet so that it automatically disconnects from the internet at a specific time.
In addition to internet scheduling, you can also restrict specific websites to be accessed on the network. You will have to enter the URLs of the websites that you block so that you can keep your child from accessing those websites. Some routers also have the feature of pausing WiFi during a specific time such as during dinner time. These parental control features are available in most WiFi routers including third-party firmware such as LPB Piso Wifi.
Use Strict Privacy Settings
Whichever apps or websites your child is using, make sure that you set strict privacy settings on those. Once an app is downloaded or an account is created on a social website, make sure that you set strict privacy settings. You should instantly go to the privacy settings and see who can see your post, who can contact you, and whose posts you can see. By setting strict privacy settings, you will be protecting your child’s privacy.
Also, turn off location services and GPS for the apps and websites that your child uses. Even if you are sitting next to your child all the time, turning location services off is an excellent way to protect your child’s privacy on the internet.
Check In On Your Child Regularly
As a parent, you should regularly monitor what your child is doing on the internet. Having a check on your child every once in a while to see what he is doing on the internet, which websites he/she is using, and how he/she is using them. This will not only make the child more cautious about his/her data but will also give you the peace of mind that your child is using the internet responsibly.
