Internet is a necessary evil in this century. You need it for everything in your daily life, from watching Netflix to reading your emails to learning to you-name-it, while it is also the source of one of the largest threats faced by children today.

It’s always great to witness how smart your six years old is, to know everything about an iPad and we proudly brag about it to our friends.
But 7 out of 10 children who have fallen prey to a pedophile or sexual predator started their first interaction online through the internet. I know this is not shocking anymore, as we all know about the problem.

We can help tackle this issue, and the first step towards it is to raise awareness and to educate parents on what they ought to do.

Sexting

The new millennial world “Sexting” is legal for adults. But if a child sends out a sext, he/she can be prosecuted for distribution of child pornography. If an adult is receiving such a sext, they will be sent to jail for possession of child pornography.

As a parent, you need to monitor what your child is doing on their cell phone, tablet, computer, etc. There are apps from cellphone carriers which will share a copy of all texts to you. Please note it is tough to monitor any messages sent through snap chat or WhatsApp or FB messenger etc. So it’s better not to let your child use such apps unless they are at an age where they understand this ugly face of the internet. You can always setup parental controls on their Android or iOS device to regulate what they’re allowed do and what they’re not.

Inappropriate Content

Well, you see it every time, once in a while, an inappropriate content shows up on your TV or computer while searching for something else. Ever thought how much of those contents catches the attention of your child? Research shows that kids’ addiction to porn at such a young age begins largely, by accidentally clicking on pop-up links.

All your smart tv’s, computers, iPad, and smartphone should be parental control enabled. Invest on a good home firewall and block all the unwanted stuff so that nobody can search and go to dangerous websites. Placing the computer in a family room, visible to all, helps a lot compared to having it setup in your child’s room. Also, set a scheduled time for your child to use the internet and make sure both parents enforce it.

Public chat rooms are no longer a tool for real friendships. If your teenage son or daughter happen to use public chat rooms, discourage them from leaving the public chat to a private peer to peer. Educate them on the cons.

Also, most of the social networking websites have set a minimum age before they can register, make sure your children abide by those.

Also, read these ten tips to save your child from a Pedophile http://www.checkupnewsroom.com/10-tips-to-protect-your-child-from-a-pedophile

How to identify a pedophile http://www.wikihow.com/Identify-a-Pedophile