For a lot of kids, especially during this pandemic, social media is how they interact with their friends and peers. And while the social aspect of it is good, parents do have a lot to be concerned about when it comes to safety and privacy.
Children are vulnerable online and it’s important to protect them – even if they don’t think they need protecting. Kids want to feel independent, but parents have a responsibility to protect them from the negative side of social media.
5 Tips to Keep Kids Safe on Social Media
- Set and age limit. This means that in your household your kids cannot open social media accounts until they are a certain age. Some platforms set the age at 13, 16 or 18, so abide by those limitations. Companies set these age limits for a reason.
- Review the privacy settings regularly. Privacy policies change frequently, so make sure you are reviewing your children’s accounts regularly to make sure they are safe from strangers and online scams.
- Talk to your kids. Cyber bullying is a reality that many of today’s parents didn’t have to deal with a children. Have an open dialogue with your family about how to behave online and the consequences of these actions.
- Set their profile to private. There’s a big difference between public and private profiles. Private profiles can only be viewed by friends who have been authorized by the user.
- Only allow them to accept friends they know. Even with a private profile, your child could get friend requests from people and businesses they don’t know. Be sure to explain to your kids why they should only accept people they know.
When you have an open dialogue with your kids about the dangers online, you can ensuring that they’re making good choices. Social media can be a lot of fun, but only if they are mature and responsible when using it. It can be fun to dance on Tik Tok or send their friends silly selfies using fun filters, but that needs to be done in a way that doesn’t jeopardize the safety of the child.
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