Unless you have lived under a rock for the past few years, you know how social media has become this massive phenomenon. Kids starting from 8 years old are already learning to deal with a computer. And chances are that this will get even bigger with time. Being so, learning some important social media safety tips becomes essential.
Especially for parents looking to provide a safe environment for their kids, this article will look into 5 important things you want to know to make sure your family is safe. Keep reading!
- Minimum age allowed
Most parents don’t really know this, but every single app has a minimum age allowed. One of the simplest social media safety tips is to follow these guidelines. If your kid is too young for Instagram, keep them away from it.
Remember that social media has a lot of layers of impact on our children. So not only it is unnecessary for kids to be sharing their life online, being exposed to social media might impact how they perceive themselves and others.
Read, What We Learned from the Resources on the NBCOT® Website
Keep an eye out for the age limit and take that into consideration before allowing your kids to download any new social media.
- Learn Social Media Language
One of the most challenging things when it comes to social media is their language. Parents must be completely in the dark because they simply do not understand what the kids are talking about. Remember, social media has both pros and cons.
Although we are not really advising you to keep up with the huge amounts of daily memes. It is important to at least know what some abbreviations mean. This way you will be able to catch on to anything suspicious very quickly.
- Never trust sketchy links
One of the most essential social media safety tips is to tell your kids to keep an eye out for any weird links. They are often used to steal information from the user.
Although they are everywhere online, they can often reach us by DM or Tweet. Make sure your kids are aware that they shouldn’t reply or interact with them. This will be very important to keep your kid’s information safe.
Tell them to always double check where any message is coming from. If it sounds weird, delete it and block the contact.
- Run from anything free
Exaggerated quotes and promises are something common on the internet. And while most of the times it is simply a strategy to sell something or attract views and clicks, they can also be a tool for scam operations.
Nothing on the internet is completely free, and there are no such things as online miracles. If what they are promising sounds too good to be true, then It probably is.
Be aware that no information should be given in exchange for whatever is being promised. This way your family will be saved from one of the most used scam strategies online.
- Disable Location
When it comes to the device’s location, it can be quite useful to keep your kid’s smartphones turned on. However, the danger is in a much deeper level. Social media often encourages people to share their location with their followers.
However, this can be a huge change for people to know where your family is at all times. You might probably know this can be quite dangerous and unsafe. Being so, discourage everyone from sharing where they are. At least until they have left the place already.
The Bottom Line…
Remember that information is key. Being so, we should be extremely careful about what type of information we are giving to our followers. They can use this information to scam your family or even put you in dangerous situations.
Also Read, Problematic Content on the Internet – Save Kids Using the Internet Web Filters
Make sure that you and your kids are secured by sharing these tips with them to make them more aware of what they do online. Do you have any extra social media safety tips? If so, share with us, we would love to hear about your experiences!
