Another important thing that you can do is to give your kids mobile phones that are actually designed for kid-friendly use. There are a lot of these phones on the market today, so you shouldn’t have any trouble finding one that matches your child’s needs. Consider getting your child one of these phones.

Firefly glowPhone

Manufactured by Firefly Mobile, the Firefly glowPhone is a mobile phone designed specifically for kids and pre-teens. The phone comes with a good set of parental control features; you can opt to control which numbers can call your child’s phone. The phone also has two keys that can be programmed to call one number each when pressed, so you can program you or your spouse’s mobile numbers into these keys.

The glowPhone features a design that can be visually appealing for pre-teens; the pink version of the phone may appeal to young girls.

LG Migo VX1000

Younger kids may be more appreciative of the LG Migo. This phone is designed for strict parental control; the user of the phone may call only four numbers. They phone’s keypad includes only five keys, one key for each phone number and another key for emergencies. Kids may also appreciate the phone’s smaller size. The LG Migo is a great phone if you need a basic mobile phone that your child can use to contact you in case of emergencies.

Kajeet

Kajeet mobile phones offer a lot of variety, so these phones may be more ideal for pre-teens who want a unique phone. Through Kajeet, parents get an online dashboard for setting parental controls. From the dashboard, parents can set time limits to mobile phone use, set up numbers for call screening, as well as activate a GPS locator.

As fun as these games are, unfortunately, they can be potentially dangerous for kids. There are various ways through which videogames can have an online aspect: games can be played on websites themselves, game software can be downloaded from the Web, and videogame consoles can also allow player-to-player communications via the Internet.

This is why parental supervision and control are even more important when kids use the Internet for gaming. It’s best for parents to be always aware of the videogames their kids regularly play, since kids can be exposed to a lot of security or safety threats through online gaming. If you have a kid who’s an avid online gamer, make sure that you know which games he or she is playing and make an effort to find out how the game works.

Internet safety experts also recommend for parents to be aware of the features of the gaming consoles their kids use. Many games that can be played on these consoles allow players to communicate with each other using the Internet. If your videogame console and its games do offer these features, remind your child to be careful about sharing information that’s too personal. Information such as home addresses or phone numbers should also never be shared with other players in the game.

Just like with other online activities kids participate in, one of the best things for parents to do is to closely supervise kids’ gaming habits. Make sure that there are limits on the time your kids spend playing online games. It’s also best to keep computers and gaming consoles in rooms where you can easily keep track of your kids’ online gaming activities.

One strategy that can be effective is to make the learning process more fun. Through this, kids become more open to learning about concepts of online safety. One of the best ways to help kids enjoy learning about these concepts is through activity cards.

NetSmartz, a resource from The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, provides a wide variety of activity cards that parents can download and print out for their kids. The activity cards are categorized for each grade level: primary, intermediate, middle school, and high school. The cards contain age-appropriate activities that teach kids about the safe use of instant messaging, online profiles, and chat rooms.

The activity cards for the primary level are appropriate for kids aged 5 to 7. Since kids at these ages are usually only starting to learn how to use the Internet, the cards suggest enjoyable online activities. Some guidelines on Internet safety are also taught, as well as tips on what they should do in case they meet potentially dangerous people online. The importance of keeping information private when using instant messaging is also discussed.

Intermediate level activity cards move on to teaching kids about the consequences of cyberbullying through the Internet and text messaging. The cards suggest activities that discuss Web viruses and their effects on computers. For kids in the middle school level, the activity cards recommend watching a movie about a girl who runs away from home to meet a man she meets through the Web. The dangers of such behavior are discussed, along with concepts on proper etiquette when playing online games and using social networking sites.

Fortunately, there are a lot of things you can do to protect your kids from these dangers. Keeping kids away from chatrooms may be futile, since chatting is one of the most popular Web activities among kids today.

Make sure your kids know the potential dangers of chatting.

The best way to protect your kids from these dangers is to make sure that they have sufficient knowledge. Discuss the potential dangers with your kids and make them aware of the consequences of unwise actions in chatrooms. This will help them be more mindful of what they say and who they talk to in these chatrooms. You should also remind them that they can approach you if they feel uncomfortable with the conversations they’re having online.

Have your kids enter only moderated chatrooms.

If your child wants to meet new friends through chatrooms, make sure they participate in chatrooms that are moderated by responsible adults. There are chatrooms on AOL and MSN that are moderated by adults and are rated G. You can also use parental control software to prevent your child from seeing inappropriate or obscene words and phrases.

Remind your child to never share information with strangers online.

It’s always important to keep your personal information private on the Web, especially in chatrooms. Remind your kids to never give out personal details such as their phone numbers, home address, or even the school they go to. You should also work with your child on deciding on appropriate nicknames or handles to use in chatrooms. The right nicknames should be interesting without giving away personal details such as age or location.

Unrestricted Web use can pose some threats to child safety or security, so it’s best if you set age-appropriate Web activities for your kids.  Here’s a quick guide that you can use to set the right Web activities for kids of all ages.

Ages 7 to 9

Seven years of age is usually the best time to introduce kids to the Internet and websites that provide educational games and other learning tools. Experts don’t usually recommend kids younger than this age to use the Web at all. At these ages, it’s best to completely supervise kids’ Web use, so that they don’t accidentally stumble upon inappropriate websites.

Ages 10 to 12

At these ages, kids are more interested in the Web and the activities they can do on it. So it becomes even more important for you to supervise kids’ Web activities. Kids will definitely want to try out online gaming, social networking, instant messaging, chat, and email. Kids’ Web use should still be supervised, but not as closely. Schedules and parental control software work best at helping you oversee your kids’ Web use.

Ages 13 and above

Teenagers are generally harder to control in terms of their Internet use. By this age, most kids will have mastered using social networking sites, chat rooms, and gaming websites, and many of them will know how to get around parental control software too. So, at these ages, it’s important for you to remind your kids about the importance of keeping personal information private and practicing good judgment.

It’s easy to see why teens would be fond of these applications. These applications can help them locate their friends easily while allowing their friends to be updated of their whereabouts. As it always is with online applications, though, these can also bring certain dangers to your kids. So to ensure your kids’ safety, here are some useful tips you can discuss with your kids regarding geosocial networking applications.

Help your kid choose the best application.

Offer your child guidance when it comes to picking out the geosocial networking application he’ll be using. By going through the process with your child, you’ll be able to learn more about the pros and cons of each application. These applications often offer varying settings and features, so make sure your child fully understands the functions of the application he wants to use.

Check if the application syncs with other services.

Some location sharing applications can be integrated with social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Remind your child to check if his or her location updates are automatically shared to his or her social networks; your child may be disclosing his location to more people than he thinks. It’s always best to customize the application’s settings so that your child can decide when to publish his location updates to his social networks.

Customize the application’s security settings for safety.

Remind your child to look over the application’s security settings and to customize relevant settings for his safety. Some settings might allow the application to automatically send out location updates whenever you go, which might not be ideal for your child’s privacy.

So if your child uses a mobile phone to talk to his or her peers, you might want to keep an eye on exactly how he uses his mobile phone. Does he call them often or does he prefer texting? Whichever method he prefers, he needs to know that there are certain boundaries that need to be preserved. This is especially critical with the popularity of sexting nowadays.

Formed from the words ‘sex’ and ‘texting’, sexting occurs when sexually explicit or suggestive photographs or text messages are sent from one mobile phone to another. Many people, teens included, use this is a means of interacting with their peers. Although it may seem harmless on the surface, sexting can actually bring a lot of dangers.

One very real danger that can be caused by sexting is the malicious spread of another person’s nude photos, especially where there’s no way to discount the identity of the photo’s subject. If this happens, your child’s reputation at school and among his or her peers may very well be destroyed. Your child may also be traumatized by such events.

This is why it’s important that you keep an eye on your child’s mobile activity. While it won’t help if you insist on monitoring each text message your child sends or receives, one of the best things you can do to protect your kids is to make sure that they’re aware of the potential negative consequences of sexting. By reiterating to your child that the dangers of sexting are indeed very real, you can help them understand that sexting is a dangerous activity.

To protect your child from the dangers of hacking and identity theft, here are some tips that you can advise for him or her. Make sure that your child listens to your advice so that his or her computer and mobile phone is sufficiently secured.

Use PINs and passwords to prevent unauthorized access to computers.

Ask your child to set passwords for computer access, even just for the computer’s desktop. This is especially important if your child stores important files on his or her computer and if his or her friends often use your child’s computer. Of course, you should make sure that you know this password so that you can check on your child’s computer from time to time.

Remind your child to confirm the legitimacy of the programs and applications he downloads.

The Web offers numerous applications, programs, and games that your child can download for free. Unfortunately, many of these downloadable programs come with a lot of hidden files that are actually malware. This malware can gather your child’s information and do irreparable damage to the computer system. So before he downloads any program from the Web, make sure your child asks for your help and permission first.

Make sure that your child’s computer has updated security software.

Security software can provide good protection for your child’s computer. There are a lot of varieties of security software available today, so make sure you get the software that comes with a lot of positive reviews and recommendations. Make sure that the computer’s operating system is updated when needed, too.

While there is nothing inherently wrong with social networking sites, these sites become dangerous when they’re used by people such as stalkers and hackers. In such cases, there’s little your child can do to prevent being hacked or being stalked online by someone they don’t know personally. That’s why it’s best if your preadolescent or teenaged child is proactive in protecting himself or herself online. Here are some tips that your child can use for online safety.

Limit the amount of information that’s publicly viewable.

Many social networking sites allow users to set the categories of information that groups of people in the users’ networks can see. For instance, you can advise your child to customize his profile’s privacy settings by choosing an option that prevents people outside his network from seeing his profile information. Your child can also set his profile so that it can be completely seen only by trusted family members and friends. These privacy settings provide your child a measure of protection against stalkers and hackers.

Think twice before posting pictures.

Remind your child about the dangers of posting too many photos online. These photos can be manipulated and used to bully your child or put him in compromising situations. Likewise, questionable photos should be kept off the Web as much as possible; even if these photos are posted as private content, their security can easily be breached by Internet-savvy Web users.

Avoid posting information that could be used for identification offline.

Details that are highly personal, such as mobile phone numbers, bank account numbers, and home addresses should never be posted online. This type of information can easily be used to identify and track your child offline.

Unfortunately, just repeatedly lecturing your kids about the danger of online predators and security threats may not be an effective way of teaching them how to keep safe online. Most kids tend to recall concepts and lessons when they’re presented in a fun, interactive way. If you’re having a difficult time teaching your young kids about online safety, try these kid-friendly Internet safety tutorials.

The Carnegie Cyber Academy

This tutorial’s highly interactive nature makes it effective teaching material for kids. When your kid ‘enrolls’ at the Academy, he or she is given lessons on topics such as dealing with cyberbullies, spam email, and recognizing online threats. Throughout the course of learning, your kid is given missions based around the lessons and rewarded with gold medals upon completion of each mission. A dictionary is also provided, for clarification of terms that may seem confusing for kids.

Aside from missions, The Carnegie Cyber Academy also provides many games covering a wide range of topics, such as proper netiquette, online gaming safety, cyber security, and malware detection.

IKeepSafe.org

The website provides few educational games for kids, but the site does contain some entertaining videos on staying safe on sites such as YouTube, using Google Safe Search, downloading potentially dangerous files, and detecting online fraud. These videos feature fun graphics that will definitely appeal to kids and help them remember important lessons about keeping safe in cyberspace. The site also contains valuable resources for parents, so you’d do well to browse this site, too.