Today is Safer Internet Day and to mark the occasion, I’ve got together with Kaspersky to give away a copy of Kaspersky Lab. This is a one-licence, multi-platform solution for PCs, Macs & Android devices worth £49.99 for 3 devices
It’s definitely important to protect children when they are using the internet. Some worrying figures from a Kaspersky Lab Study show:
- More than a quarter (27 per cent) of parents believe their children have been exposed to online risks, such as accessing inappropriate content or cyber bullying in the past 12 months
- One in five parents (22 per cent) takes no action to govern their children’s online activity – whether on the home computer or mobile devices.
- 18 per cent of parents had lost money or data from their personal device as a result of their child’s unmonitored access
David Emm, senior security researcher at Kaspersky Lab, offers the following tips to stay safe online:
- Both Android smartphones and iPhones come with in-built parental controls – when purchasing a smartphone, ask the sales assistants to demonstrate these features. They have policies in place and a responsibility to make parents aware of these. By creating a demand, it is more likely they will let other parents know.
- Apply settings that prevent in-app purchases to save hefty bills should children stumble across a game with expensive add-ons.
- Install security software – these providers will offer apps to filter out inappropriate content, for example, adult images and senders of nuisance SMS messages.
- Encourage children to talk about their online experience and in particular, anything that makes them feel uncomfortable or threatened. Open a channel of communication so they feel they can discuss all areas of their online life without fear of judgement or reprimand.
- Protecting children from cyber bullies is especially challenging with smartphones as they can be targeted in so many ways, especially out of view of their parents. Deal with cyber bullying as you would in real life by encouraging children to be open and talk to a trusted adult if they experience any threatening or inappropriate messages. Numbers and contacts on apps can both be blocked if they are making children uncomfortable.
- Use the internet for good – there are sites that can advise both parents and children on how to manage online threats. Take a look at http://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/.
I have to admit, I never really thought of any protection on our phones or tablets. I had only considered using internet security on the laptop, so it’s definitely something to think about!
For your chance to win a copy of Kaspersky Lab, enter via the Rafflecopter below:
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My boys love space books at the moment and my girls love anything ith fairies and fantasy worlds!
I would love to win this, Im sure I have a virus on my PC! lol
horrible histories or anything to do with dinosaurs.
humour and mischeif
Anything to do with being naughty!
mischief
My little girl loves all the Biff, Chip and Kipper books.
Animals and comedy
Science & Nature
My son is 21 so thankfully no longer have to worry about him…well, not as far as the internet is concerned anyway!
i worry about mine seeing adult material people being able to contact them and online bullying
I worry all the time about the filth they can get access to on the net and the perverted people who lurk there. Its Scary.
I get a little concerned about my daughter – who’s old enough to know better! She’s picked up viruses a number of times & I’ve always had to sort them out. Fortunately I have some idea how to! I do worry a little when my grandchildren visit though – you never know quite what they’re up to…
I’d rather mine didn’t see adult material and hear bad language until they are older.
Yes I do – the internet is great in so many ways but also a worry!
Yes I worry, far too much information is made public
I did worry about my little brother as he spends a lot of time on the internet but when I saw his search history when I was borrowing his computer I realised he mostly looks at Minecraft videos! My baby niece is too little but I do worry as she will grow up in a world where her life is dominated by the internet.
I worry a little but limited them so am quite sure they are safe x
not at the moment but when she is older I will be worried
I am concerned, as children do need protection. Parents do their best. Whilst technology is constantly being updated. Children are keen to keep up to date with technology etc.
children need protection
Yes especially as anything can happen with the click of a mouse.
Yes I do,
my son is 10 and he knows more about internet than me and his dad put together.
Clever little thing he is.
All the time. But his computer is next to mine so I can keep an eye on him.
I don’t have kids, but if i did i would be slightly concerned
I occassionally worry about my son, but as he’s 17 now, I have to leave him to it!
yes, but supervise at all times
I don’t worry at the moment as Jack is a little too young. I am sure I will when he gets older though
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Really need as mine runs out in 18 days.
I keep an eye out! 🙂
yes,it’s a minefield
kids are in danger on the internet
Keeping the screen facing the living room and use the best security available, like Kaspersky, and I worry much less.
Whilst the internet is awesome, and none of us can ever imagine life without it now, it is just so, so easy to get viruses from it, if not careful. Too many evil people out there that seem to get pleasure from knowing they ruined someone else’s fun…..for some unknown reason.
I am pretty saavy but my Wife and Kids are a lot more vulnerable
It is very difficult to give your child independence while always having to look over their shoulder!
I don’t worry, I don’t have any children. 🙂
Not yet as he’s so young but for the future, yes.
Not too worried about my kids using the internet, but I do check that there’s no chat rooms, or any way of someone contacting them.
I am worried about what my children access on the internet, I don’t allow them to go on without me sitting next to them.
I need this, all sorts of strange things are appearing on my screen, I need this HELP
I have some virus on my computer. I wish I won.
I worry that they may accidentally access either sexually explicit images or those of violence or abuse. At the moment they only use the computer supervised, but as they get older they will be more competent at using it and won’t need our help, so will have the opportunity to leave trusted sites.
Yes, i worry about my child on the internet a lot, As most children are too trusting when it comes to sharing information at the best of times. I think as a parent you must be vigilant and take the time to check what your child is up to and especially who the are interacting with, as there are very clever predators around, as well as cyber bullies and lord knows who else.
I am not worried now she’s still young but will be when she’s older.
Always worry about them on the internet
i think as long as you have supervise and use parental settings and a virus it should be ok 🙂
no, not at all
A little. There are so many internet sites where just a mis-spelling can lead them to very bad sites.
My kids are still too young to use the Internet but I do worry for when they’re older
When they are old enough to use a computer it will be in the living room where we can see what is going on. Hopefully then we can protect them from unpleasant sites.
I do worry but we always keep a close eye on what they’re doing
I sometimes worry but have explained internet safety with my children.
With Kaspersky I do not need to worry
Every time we go on the PC
It is the best security
As the computer magazines agree
My son is a little young for it to concern me at the moment but when he’s older I will definitely worry.
We keep the laptop downstairs so we can keep an eye on what they are looking at
Anything to do with being naughty!
I dont have children. But if I did, I probably would worry.
No, Ellie is still young and is supervised whilst she is using it. However, I am much more aware of the dangers and issues that children can come across now with my Grand-Daughter than I was with my own children.
I’m concerned but try to minimise the risk by setting filters and only allowing computer access in the living room where it can be monitored
My daughter loves to google that has so many problems
At the moment no, I’m not too worried, but in the future I think I will be.
No, as long as i know what they are looking at, but that comes down to being interested in what they like and show them the rights and wrongs of the internet
Yes ofcourse however much parental security you put on your PC there is always the possibilty of pop ups getting through .I have been lucky so far – one tip though -I ban the children from using google images for their school projects as one innocent word can bring up images very inappropriate for children and not all parental blocks will identify them -.
My son uses the internet but I only let him use it in the same room as us. Its all too risky out there.
Yes I worry about my kids on the internet as there are so many loopholes and new viruses created every day! I just worry about the net in general!
I do worry, and even more so now my daughters are teenagers and have brought smartphones and laptops with several free communication apps etc, as It makes it impossible for me to supervise or safeguard all their activity. Fortunately they are very aware of the dangers of the internet so I can only hope they keep in mind what they’ve been told and make wise choices 🙁 x
Of course, but have got parental control & supervise at all times
Yes I worry as it is hard to monitor everything
Not yet 🙂
It is a bg worry. It doesn’t matter how well the internet is controlled at home, when the interent is being accessed away from home, any control you may have is weakened.
YES ! it seems to be more common for younger children to watch videos on you tube , my main issues are that certain videos really are not suitable even tho the titles and first glance content appears to be ok , we have to b so careful what we are exposing our children to
At the moment, not so much but when they get older definitely yes! x
With so many avenues being made freely open across the internet, safety for children will always be a main concern. We monitor our childrens activity by having the main pc in the living room and only allowing access for set periods. This will become harder as they age due to privacy etc so yes, its very something we are concerned about. Pro-tip any parent that believes setting up filters of what their children can see will work, think again. Our youngest aged 6 (at the time) learned how to remove the filters at school!
I do worry, but i trust my kids
I do worry a bit but I make sure he is aware of the dangers and keep a close eye on him x
I do worry yes but I explain the dangers to my son and keep an eye on him x
Yes, but I worth about everything from plastic bottled to abduction.
I do worry that the internet can bring these nssties right into our midst.
I worry about their stealth like nature .. that I may not see them
I try to forewarn and forearm all the kids in our extended family, without terrifying them.
Internet .. definitely, a double edged sword.
I would love to win this,
It is very worrying knowing what’s out there on the internet but all you can do is make sure they understand the dangers and keep an eye on them.
I worry about my children all the time on the internet – you never know what monsters are lurking in chatrooms 🙁 Such dangers make possessing a top of the range anti virus package. such as Kaspersky, a must have these days.
im always checking to see what they’re up to online!
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yes and no, we have parental controls on but still some sites it will let them on, however my kids are both very aware I can check internet history and tell them exactly what sites they have been on when and for how long, even if they try to delete the history i can get it back so they tend not to bother doing anything they shouldn’t, however my worried lie with what they do on it at school and friends houses.
Yes, but internet access in only allowed in communal areas where it is easily monitored, in addition we also have parental controls on laptops and tables.
yes i worry about whether they are being safe online or being bullied
very much so, and its terribly hard to keep check on them
I worry more as they get older & start to learn what is out there + their IT skills are starting to get better than mine! ;-(
worry bout plug sockets at home but porn on internet!!
yes as some popping advertisements are really bad for kids 🙁
I worry about how easy it is to find pornography for kids.
I love the fact that my girls are so good on the internet and that they learn really quickly how to use the computer but of course I worry about what they might inadvertently see.
I have all possible parental controls in place but once the girls start using facebook and twitter I will worry about potential trolls.
yes I worry about my son`s the older they get the more I worry! our oldest is now 14 so we have tha added worry about all the soical networks he uses aswell
I think that there will always be some worries about the internet where kids are concerned, but if parents monitor what the kids are doing on there, as much as they can, then I think Its safe enough, hopefully x
fab prize
I worry intensely about the dangers of the internet and good blocking program is essential to counter the natural curiosity of children.
Us mums always worry, but I do try not to smother them.
They’re not old enough yet but I really try to make them as interactive as I can for their age and am teaching them the things they need to know to make their own decisions rather than imposing restrictions.
Not really any worries, I monitor my daughter pretty closely for her own safety!