By Holly Hawkins
Holly Hawkins has more than 15 years of experience in online child safety and forging best practices for AOL in the area of kids and teen protection. In her role as AOL’s Director of Consumer Policy and Child Safety, Ms. Hawkins works closely with both domestic and international child protection and Internet safety organizations. She serves on the Board of the Family Online Safety Institute and is an advisor to Enough is Enough, a member of the European Commission’s Social Networking Principles Task Force, and on the UK Council for Children and Internet Safety (UKCCIS). She is the co-creator and frequent contributor of Safetyclicks.com, and she is a member of the International Association of Privacy Professionals as a Certified Privacy Professional.
The arrival and rapid adoption of portable, connected devices has, literally and figuratively, lifted the computer from our homes and dropped it into our child’s backpack. This portability is not always in the form of a cell phone, but includes, among other things, handheld gaming devices which devices that are very popular with younger children. For instance, one of the most popular handheld gaming devices targeting users twelve and under touts Wi-Fi capability, a built-in Internet browser, and a camera with easy Facebook integration. Another way to look at the Internet in the backpack is to realize our children are carrying around content creation and publishing tools capable of global reach. And, there is no editor.
These portable, connected devices pose a greater risk to our children than the home computer because they can be pulled out and used anywhere and at anytime on impulse. Children explore, push limits, and take risks – all behaviors associated with learning and gaining independence, but this can be extremely problematic when played out on-the-go and online without physical parental supervision. Children very often point, click and share without ever taking a moment to think about the potential consequences to themselves or others who may be involved.
As parents, we need to manage our children’s online access and activities across a wide-range of devices – tablets, cell phones, gaming consoles and handhelds. We do not need to be experts on all of these, but we do need to know what Internet-enabled devices our children are using, the risks posed and available safeguards. Most come with built-in safety features to limit functionality.
Just as important as managing devices, we need to
educate our children regarding safe and responsible Internet usage. Children should be advised never to share information on impulse, but rather take a minute and ask themselves 5 questions before posting content (text, still image or video).
The 5 questions are:
- Is the content of a private conversation or occasion that should be kept private?
- Is it something that I would want the world to see or, at minimum, people who know me – my parents, my grandparents, my teachers, my coach, or my college admissions office?
- Is it giving away any personal information about me or someone else either directly or indirectly, perhaps in the background of an image or video?
- Could it embarrass someone else?
- Is it meant to be hurtful to anyone, especially someone that I am mad at or don’t like?
If they answer yes to any of these questions, then the content should not be posted. There is so much more that can be shared that isn’t going to be hurtful to oneself or others.
The portable Internet that our children carry in their backpacks, bags, and pockets certainly has made it easier to share, but not all things should be shared. Portability brings more responsibility to us as parents as well as our children. Now, more than ever, our children need our guidance to make good decisions when it comes to the online space even when we are not there to oversee them.
Image Credit: o5com via Flickr
