Protect Your Children on Internet- Parental Control

Children begin to use technology at an earlier and younger age. According to a CIS survey, in Spain children have their first mobile between the ages of 11 and 12, although 29.7% have had it from the age of 10. On the other hand, according to data from Influence Central, 64% of American children have access to the Internet through their own computer or tablet, and 24% of them access the network in their own room, not in a family space shared where supervised by an adult.

However, the network carries different risks for children. In fact, it is estimated that 1 in 11 children between 8 and 18 years old is addicted to new technologies, which is due to the fact that parents do not limit the time they dedicate to video games, chats and browsing. It has also been appreciated that exposure to violent content found on the Internet generates aggressive behaviors in childhood and that the excessive use of new technologies is related to the appearance of problems such as attention deficit, bipolar disorder and behavioral disorders.

To this is added Cyberbullying, a problem that in Spain already affects 5.4% of children between 11 and 14 years old. Unfortunately, 72% of them prefer to remain silent as they are afraid to tell their parents what is happening to them. In these cases, the most common is that they are harassed by their own classmates through social networks, but there are also cases of sextortion or Cyberbullying.

In this scenario, the solution is not to prohibit technology and Internet access, but to teach children to use these tools safely and with measure, for which it is essential that parents supervise their activity manually & by Parental Control Software.

How to protect your children from the risks posed by the Internet?

·         Limit the time of use. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children ages 6 to 12 only have access to electronic devices and the Internet for 2 hours a day. The rest of the time should be spent at school, rest and other types of games and, of course, talking with their parents.

·         Know your child's browsing habits. It is not about spying on them to find out in great detail what they do on the Internet, but it is important that you know which websites your child accesses regularly, which social networks he uses and which applications he downloads on his mobile or tablet.

 

·      Be careful with the webcams. Most tablets and laptops have a front webcam, with which you must be very careful as there is a malware called RAT that activates this camera from a distance to spy on whoever is behind the device. Therefore, it is best to disable its function.

·     Explain what Cyberbullying is. By explaining what Cyberbullying is and the different forms it can take, your child will be better prepared to deal with this situation and less likely to fall for a bully.

·     Teach him to protect his identity. Explain to your child the importance of choosing strong passwords and connecting only to protected networks. You must also teach them to protect their personal data and not provide them on the network, as well as not to disseminate certain images that can later be used against them.

·      Install Parental Control Software. These programs have become the best allies of parents. Protegent Total Security Software's parental control software, for example, allows you to set smart filters so that the child does not enter harmful websites, limit browsing time, block certain pages and set days and hours of use. In addition, it allows you to know what programs and applications the child uses, as well as the time spent on each of them. It also includes a geolocation and smartphone blocking service, so that not only will you be able to locate your mobile if it is lost, but you can also remotely lock it and erase the data, so that it does not fall into the wrong hands.

In case your child is being a victim of Cyberbullying, Parental Control Software offers a Cyber ​​Protection package that not only includes parental control from Bad Internet but also legal advice. This way you will know what to do if someone has published photos or information that harms your children or if someone follows and harasses them on the Internet. In fact, once you expose the case, it will also be in charge of tracking and eliminating all content that harms the child or their parents.