Safety Online

Help protect your child by sharing these tips about online safety.
The internet can be a wonderful resource and a lot of fun, but it is important to teach children how to be safe online. Here are a few suggestions on how you can help educate your child about navigating the online world safely.
Personal Information
•Your child should never share their personal information with anyone online. This would include things like their name, age, address, phone number, and name of their school. Even if the request for such information seems innocent make sure your child involves you so that you can review the situation and make sure of its legitimacy.

Passwords
•Passwords are meant to be confidential. They are in place to protect your information so you should always tell your child to never share them with anyone except you, the parent.

Online Usernames
•It is very tempting to use your actual name when creating online usernames, but it is always best if it does not reflect your child’s real identity. In many cases usernames are shown to other people online and you want to be sure you are sharing that name with only people you wish to know your name.

Fostering Open Communication
•The best policy in keeping your child safe online is to establish open communication with them by being involved with their experiences online. Sit down with them and review sites together. Encourage them to talk to you about what sites are interesting to them and to tell you if anyone says or does something online that makes them feel uncomfortable. Fostering open communication will make it easier for you to protect them.