Online Predators - How To Protect Your Kids From Them

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Also Read: Look Into Internet Safety Solutions Today

How Online Sexual Predators Do What They Do

Online predators have been known, more often than not, to graduate their predation to full- blown trafficking after successfully sinking their claws into their victims. Trafficked children are usually first groomed online before they’re stolen and sent into a life of sexual exploitation among other things. There is emerging a new trend of trafficking where the victims aren’t stolen from home at all. In-fact, their abusers would rather have them in the safety of their parents’ home. They would then direct the child to do their bidding, by the same tactics of coercion and blackmail, and parents may be none the wiser. Law enforcement has coined a new term, sextortion.

It is one thing for a child to go looking for trouble. And it is another for trouble to purposefully stalk and snare a child. Online predators usually target their victims based on the content of their social media posts. Example, is the child lonely, being bullied in school, do they have low self esteem, how strong is their relationships with the adults in their lives?

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Online predators would usually go for the ‘easy pickings’. Those kids who are much more vulnerable to be preyed on. But that is not to say all other children are not at risk; online sexual abuse, child exploitation and trafficking transcends economic, social and racial barriers. The rise of smartphones and anonymity provided by the internet has radically changed the landscape of predation, both online and offline.

So those are a few snapshots of the scale of evil we’re dealing with. But it isn’t all doom and gloom, because parents and guardians can take some proactive steps to put layers of security in place to protect their kids.

SOME NECESSARY STEPS YOU CAN TAKE

HAVE THE TALK:

Talk to your kids about the internet. Discuss the good, the bad and the ugly. Just like we have age appropriate discussions about sex, drugs, money and race, parents should discuss the opportunities as well as dangers on the internet. Explain to kids who and what sexual predators are. Tell kids about what grooming tactics look and feel like. And warn them about the danger these online predators pose to them and the entire family. Discuss topics like sexting, social media profiles and the disclosure of sensitive information.

INSTALL AN INTERNET SAFETY SOLUTION:

Bark is dedicated to helping keep kids safe online and in real life with their groundbreaking products for families and schools. Through intelligent monitoring, they’ve helped prevent school shootings and suicide attempts. They have also alerted to signs of cyberbullying, adult content, child predators, self-harm, and depression. In a nutshell, Bark helps families manage and protect their children’s digital lives.

Their award-winning service monitors 30+ of the most popular apps, social media platforms, and chat rooms. It looks for signs of issues like cyberbullying, suicidal ideation, online predators, threats of violence, and more. Plus, Bark now offers web filtering and screen time management tools. This aims to empower families to set healthy limits around the websites and apps their kids can access. It also sets limits to when they can visit them. Click to try it free for 7 days or visit Bark.us to learn more.

And keeping with point number one above, have a talk about a system like Bark. Let your children know you’re not spying on them, but rather doing your parental duty of keeping them safe.

I will go as far as saying if your child has a smartphone, or if kids are ever left alone at home with access to the internet, then you must get this parental control software.

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KEEP COMPUTERS AND PHONES IN COMMUNAL AREAS:

According to the United States of America’s FBI, most videos and photos used in sextortion cases are taken in the privacy of bedrooms or bathrooms. Taking away this privacy by requiring the use of gadgets in communal areas reduces this risk. Use of phones and computers in communal areas may also work to prevent exposure to pornograhy and lewd chat room discussions. Kids would most likely not entertain inappropriate behaviors online when they have parents or other siblings for company.

CREATE A FAMILY ONLINE SAFETY CONTRACT:

An online safety contracts should state all the dos and donts while online. Here are some rules you could include in the contract:

1. If you don’t know them in real life, do not befriend them online
2. Do not post the name of your school
3. Do not post our home address.
4. Specifically state what social media platforms are allowed according to age.
5. Never download anything from unknown sources
6. Choose a gender neutral screen name
7. Stop all communication with anyone asking personal questions and sexually suggestive questions.
8. Never agree to meet an online friend in person, ever.
9. Children under 18 should share a family email address.
10. It should state how much screen time is allowed per day or week.

Commit to the contract as parents. And then require children to commit too. This creates expectations and sets boundaries. A system like Bark can be very helpful in enforcing a Family Online Safety Contract.

ACTIVELY MONITOR ONLINE ACTIVITY:

Monitor and limit children’s time on the internet. Also pay close attention to what times of the day they spend most on the internet. Excessive amounts of time spent online may be a sign of a problem. Bark can help you successfully do this. Click here to learn more.

The digital age has brought with it many advancements. But on the backdrop of that advancement lurks evil of which magnitude parents cannot begin to imagine. And security almost always seem to take a backseat to cybercrime . So here is to hoping you’ll take and apply some of the recommendations here to protect your family.

Share these tips with family and friends. You may be saving a loved one a lot of heartache. Also leave us a comment on the topic, we would love, love, love to hear from you!

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