The Internet provides children with wonderful social and developmental opportunities
The Internet provides children with wonderful social and developmental opportunities. However, parents should never forget that cybercriminals and scammers are a constant source of danger online and that, like adults, children are not immune.
Children make extensive use of Internet resources such as search engines, social networks and email. All of these are a potential source of threats, namely the distribution of links to phishing or pornographic websites as well as adult content spam which may negatively affect a child’s psyche and expose the computer to the risk of malware infection.
What can parents do in this situation?
“Currently, the Internet Security products offered by many companies feature a setting that can be used to protect your child against a number of threats. You can choose the solution most suitable in terms of the possible restrictions, the flexibility of the settings, etc.,” explains Konstantin Ignatyev, Kaspersky Lab’s Web Content Analysts Group Manager. “Using built-in security solutions is just the first real step you can take to ensure that your child is protected against the potential dangers of the Internet.”
There are a number of additional ways to protect your child online:
- enable the SafeSearch features available in most popular search systems;
- configure special settings in social network and IM accounts;
- make use of email filters;
- install additional software to help control your child’s online activity;
- explain a set of simple rules to your child that must be followed when surfing the web.
Detailed instructions on settings can be found in the article ‘Kids on the Internet: safe surfing at home’ by Konstantin Ignatyev at: www.securelist.com.
