기술의 출현으로 우리는 부모로서 먼 길을 왔습니다. 가정용 컴퓨터가 처음 주류가 되었을 때 우리도 아마 십대였을 것입니다. 멀리 떨어진 곳과 알려지지 않은 사람으로 통하는 관문인 이 장치를 사용하면서 우리에게 첫 번째로 각인된 규칙은 이름과 주소를 알려주거나 나이와 성별을 알려주지 않는 것이었습니다. 이 소수의 규칙은 기본적으로 "낯선 사람과 이야기하지 마십시오"로 요약됩니다. 이제, 시간과 기술이 발전하고 우리 자신도 어린이와 청소년의 부모가 됨에 따라 그러한 충고의 말은 한 귀에서 나오고 다른 귀로 나오는 말에 불과합니다!
사실, 십대 초반의 아이는 자신의 신분을 비밀로 유지한다는 바로 그 개념을 비웃을 것입니다! 소셜 미디어의 미로도 마찬가지입니다. 다음은 입소문을 타게 되는 것입니다.
이에 대한 반대 측면은 오늘날과 같은 시대에 기술이 건전한 교육과 현재 해외에 살고 있는 사랑하는 사람들과 연락을 유지하는 데 매우 중요해졌습니다. 우리 아이들을 보호하기 위한 목적으로 가정에서 기술과 그 장치를 전면적으로 금지할 수는 없습니다. 우리는 그들을 박탈하고 고립시킴으로써 득보다 실이 더 많을 것입니다. 모든 문제를 해결하는 첫 번째 단계는 적을 아는 것입니다. 따라서 온라인에 있는 포식자 무리에 대한 인식이 필요합니다.
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인터넷 피싱 사기:
여러 번, 우리의 아이들과 십대들은 같은 나이, 성별, 지역 인구 통계학적 아동을 만나 온라인에서 유대감을 형성하거나 친구가 됩니다. 이것은 종종 실생활에서 만날 계획으로 이어집니다. 그들은 이 '사람'이 그들이 주장하는 것이 아닐 가능성이 높다는 것을 인식해야 합니다. 어린이나 십대에 대한 사악한 의도를 가진 포식자일 수 있습니다.
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포럼 또는 채팅 게시판 동료 압력:
Many of these ‘so called’ online friends may bully your child or teen into doing things that they are not comfortable doing. Pressure to share their photographs, home addresses, parents credit card or social security details are amongst the few that may be demanded off them. The peer pressure to perform these tasks and being labeled as ‘Chicken’ often leads to the kids and teens in making the wrong choices.
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Retail Abuse:
This is another sector that is slowly becoming an issue in this day and age, in recent case, a 9-year-old accessed his family’s credit card and booked himself a one-way ticket to Bali, Indonesia all by himself. The airline too was accepting of this young traveler.
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Acces of Uncensored Content:
With the quality education our kids are getting in schools in regard to technology, it becomes very easy for them to override firewalls for censored content. Engaging with Bots that lead to Ransomware and Malware:Many a times, any application that the kids download, turns out to be a ransomware or a malware. This only makes us lose precious data that hasn’t been backed up but also leads to one having to change one’s IP address alongside your corrupted device.
To deal with these numerous issues, one needs to create a list of do’s and don’ts that need to be adhered to a Once applied, it shall increase your ward’s cyber security, protect their digital identity and also make sure that they come to no harm.
Do:
- Disable Location Services: Disabling location services on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other social media sites is a must. Irrespective if one is posting photographs of a location visited (like a beach) or while one is simply sharing a view or a post.
- Set Up Firewalls: Firewalls in place on your home PC or tablet or any device is a must to keep out uncensored content that can corrupt young minds. Ensure That you add specific keywords related to the content that needs to be blocked along with video streaming channels and websites.
- Real Time Sudden Check Ups: Sudden and random checking of devices, PCs and Phones to ensure that the kids and teens are following rules may seem like an invasion of their privacy, but, it is a necessary step in keeping them safe.
- Set up a time schedule for accessing the Internet: We cannot keep the kids away from the Internet due to our fears. They need it to access not just their social media accounts with which they are connected not only with their friends and family, but also to complete their homework and research.
- Monitoring Application that are downloaded: A keen eye on what is being downloaded plays a great part in ensuring their safety and security. As in the unfortunate case of the now defunct ‘Blue Whale’ app, they too may be engaging in something that can turn their life upside down.
Don’ts:
- Don’t share details before going on a vacation: It is not only a risk for the kids and teens in the family, but this vital piece of information can put your entire family’s life in jeopardy. Your house can be broken in and robbed and your belongings stolen! You can even be attacked on the way to your destination if you keep posting regular updates of your location in the middle of your journey.
- Don’t plan on meeting a stranger from the Internet: One of the most crucial things to avoid at all costs is to not meet or even plan to meet any stanger/friend that you have ‘met’ online. Amber alerts can do only so much.
- Don’t bully, and tell your parents if someone bullies you: No one is allowed to make you do things that one is uncomfortable doing. If a child or a teen ever feels pressured into doing something that they know is wrong, they must at once confide in their parents. ( a word of advice to all parents. Trust your child and focus on the issue at hand and not how the situation manages to escalate so much)
- Don’t share your details with anyone: This certainly needs to be your new family mantra, especially when using the Internet. Under no circumstances should one share their names, age, location, phone number, IP addresses or even one’s mother’s maiden name. These are all key instruments in compromising one’s digital identity.
There can be a number of things that we can do to make sure that our kids and teens remain safe. But, one of the most important thing to keep in mind is by monitoring them online, we take that extra step that shall protect them from majority of the evil in the world. Be safe, be secure.