Internet Rules

The Internet is like a big city. In a big city, there are nice places to visit and people to meet. There are museums to explore and movies to watch. There are places to go to make new friends. But also like a big city, there are dangers: predators, violence, pornography. Would you let your children run around a large metropolitan area unattended without any guidance from you on what and who to avoid? One of the first warnings parents give their children is, “Don’t talk to strangers.” The Internet shouldn’t be taken any more lightly.

You probably already have a set of rules in place for your children on what they are allowed to watch on television or what video games they are allowed to play. Consider also creating a list of family Internet rules — set clear guidelines on what sites they are or are not allowed to visit, how much time they are allowed to spend, and whether or not they are allowed to communicate with others online. Make sure your children understand the following safety measures.

General Safety

• Keep computers and tablets in a common family room, not in a child’s bedroom. Keep open communication between you and your children about the Internet. Let them know they can come to you if they find something offensive or have a question about something they found.
• Report anything that is suspicious looking. National Center For Missing and Exploited Children (or 1-800-843-5678) — report any online child pornography, obscene material sent to your child, or other adult harassment of your child.
• Installing some sort of filtering software to help prevent access to adult sites. Consider installing a virus protection program such as McAfee.
• Be sure to let your children know that some e-mails contain harmful hidden programs. If there is an attachment to an e-mail, do not let them open it without a parent looking at it first. If it looks suspicious or comes from someone unknown to you, delete it. Also, caution your children against downloading any free software or games from the Internet without your approval.

Make sure your children know that not everyone they meet online is a nice person or is even honest about who they really are.

Online Communication

• Social media accounts must be set to private. Do not let them set up a public profile, which provides information such as hobbies or location to others.
• Never let your children give out personal information to others. This includes their real name, where they live, school name or other identifiable details.
• Never share passwords with others online or even friends.
• Let them know they are never to friend anyone they do not know. Make sure your children know that not everyone they meet online is a nice person or is even honest about who they really are.
• If they find a message that makes them uncomfortable, tell them they should stop talking to that person (whether e-mail, chat, message board), and tell you immediately.
• Help them understand that Internet communication is just a different form of talking to a real person. Just because the person is not in the same room is not an excuse to be rude or say things they normally wouldn’t tell someone in person.

Family Rules

While at a minimum your children should verbally be told what they can and cannot do online, consider also having a printed list of rules that everyone in your family signs. Here is a free printable Family Internet Contract for kids.