How to Keep Kids Safe on Social Media

How to Keep Kids Safe on Social Media: 24/7 Safety

The internet keeps people connected. However, some people use social media platforms to bully and con people. Children are at risk of cyberbullying, conmanship, and other vices that can dent their mental health. Although there are laws that protect children online, parents need to know how to keep kids safe on social media. Active involvement of parents involves restricting what kids access, how they interact, and how long they are on social media sites.

Parents may also expose their children to social media trolling through the content they post. It is tempting to document every milestone the child hits – but have you considered what that might do to them when they are ready to create their account? Read on to learn more.  

Top online threats for kids 

Words can hurt – mostly mentally. Online bullies use words to either entice their victims into a con or torture them mentally. Children, especially teenagers, are very active on social media. Parents learning how to keep kids safe on social media will significantly reduce the threat. Unlike adults, children can suffer lifelong trauma from simple words used by bullies. From predators to pots that torture kids psychologically, there is no shortage of threats on social media. 

A child might expose details about their life and family without stopping to think about the effects of that – and the predator uses these to advance their agenda. They may also curiously download malware that predators can use to access their parents’ bank accounts. Knowing a child’s online threats is the first step in protecting them. Here are some threats to observe when learning how to keep kids safe on social media:

  • Cyberbullying 

How much ridicule and insults can a teenager take before they break down? About 90% of teens on social media have witnessed some form of cyberbullying. Most of these agree that vice is a serious problem. It is common for children to ignore cyberbullying for a long time until they cannot take it anymore. They will be ridiculed, insulted, and their person attacked – in most cases, for no good reason. Social media games are the bullies’ playground.

The player persona of the child can be attacked incessantly, turning an otherwise leisurely adventure into a nightmare for the kids. The bullies can exacerbate the situation by spreading the hate into more platforms and can even attack the victims in real life. Learning how to keep kids safe on social media involves talking to kids about their online lives. You can also use cybersecurity software that allows you to monitor what your children are doing online. 

How to Keep Kids Safe on Social Media

  • Predators Online 

Predators are always lurking on social media sites, waiting to take advantage of the innocence of children. Without your supervision as a parent and if you do not know how to keep kids safe on social media, the predators will abuse their trust and lure them into dangerous places. Social media sites and gaming platforms allow predators to run accounts anonymously, which is how they lure the young ones. The FBI is vigilant in protecting children from predators, but parents must know how to keep kids safe on social media as they are the first line of defense. By the time the FBI comes in, it will already to too late for the kids. 

  • Leaked Private Information 

It is the innocence of kids that leads them to the slaughterhouse. Unwittingly, children might share their home addresses, nude photos, and other socially identifiable information. Even posting photos of a family vacation outside of town can lead to problems with predators. Worse, the children may not remember to set who sees their content and who doesn’t. Predators online can use the information provided to execute vices such as identity theft and even burglary for families on vacation. Although you may not want to snoop into your child’s social media activities, remind them that everyone can see what you see on their profiles. 

  • Phishing 

Phishing involves using dubious information to get children to click on malicious links to open attachments. Phishing experts know your children’s interests and will use them to manipulate them. The phishing content comes from legitimate people or companies. It might be a friend asking them to download the latest game or enticing them to grab a chance to make easy money. Cybercriminals target unsuspecting children, so you need to know how to keep kids safe on social media. Opening the links to attachments can lead to theft of personal data or scams. 

How to Keep Kids Safe on Social Media

  • Online Scams  

Most phishing criminals aim at scamming children. They will offer them free access to sites they love, free online games, and chances to make a few dollars online. Young people trust easily, which is how criminals lure them into providing their parents’ bank details. Children must learn that a deal that sounds too good is usually a scam. 

How to Keep Kids Safe on Social Media

  • Psychologically Traumatizing Information 

The internet always remembers. Whatever children post online stays online, and bullies can access it many years later to torture and ridicule your child. The photos a kid posts in their teenage years might haunt them years later when they attend a job interview. A child needs to present themselves online in a way that does not affect their careers and relationships later in life. 

  • Inappropriate Content 

No one wants their kids to engage in early sex. However, if you do not learn how to keep kids safe on social media and restrict what kids access online, they will access xxx-rated sites. 

How to Keep Kids Safe on Social Media: Tips for Safe Online Learning 

Online learning is here to stay. However, children are only sometimes safe on these platforms. Learning to keep kids safe on social media will help them learn comfortably while avoiding bullies. Here are tips to keep them safe:

  • Avoid Giving Out Personal Information – Sharing personal details is the first step to bringing a bully closer to you. These details include your real name, school, home address, personal email, photos, phone number, and other personally identifiable details. Avoid popups that require you to give out your personal information. If you join chatrooms, restrict the information you give, as you may never know who the cybercriminal is. 
  • Avoid Meeting People You Meet Online – Students love making new friends, but that might come at a cost. Some people online pretend to be students and use photos and personal information of a student to lure you to meet them physically. Do not meet with such people or even accept gifts from them. 
  • Learn More About Cyberbullying – Bullying is common in schools. Students might receive abusive content from other students, affecting them psychologically. In such a case, the student must report to the school authority. 
  • Don’t Be the Bully – The way to handle a bully is to ignore their messages and content and report them to authorities. Being a bully in return will only cause more problems. The information you post online stays online, and the bully might turn the story around to make you look like the abuser. Only post school-appropriate content on school boards. 
  • Avoid Using Personal Email and Full Names on Discussion Boards – You should only use the school-related email and an online name that disguises your real name. Bullies and predators might be lurking on school discussion boards. 
  • Learn More About Children Online Privacy Protection Rule (COPPA) – A federal law protects students and children from data-collecting websites. Learning more about your rights will guide you on the data you can provide to websites and how to report sites that collect your data with the consent of your parents. 
  • Choose Learning Platforms and Apps Wisely – Research learning platforms and apps before downloading them or creating an account. This way, you will not download malware into your computer unknowingly. 

Social Media Safety Resources for Kids 

Explore the resources below to learn how to keep kids safe on social media:

  • OnGuardOnline: The Federal Trade Commission created this site to help parents learn about their children’s safety when they play online games and videos. 
  • WiredSafety: A general site about online safety for teachers and parents. 
  • NetSmartz.org: A site by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, NetSmartz aims to educate everyone on staying safe online. 
  • StaySafeOnline.org: This is another site for parents and children to protect their details and stay safe from bullies. 
  • Family Online Safety Institute: The site offers printable articles with tips for teens, parents, and teachers. 
  • Be Internet Awesome: An online guide that teaches how to keep kids safe on social media and other internet platforms. 
  • CyberTipline: You can report any cases of cyberbullying on this site. The authorities will take care of the bully or criminal. 

Besides knowing how to keep kids safe on social media, you need to learn how to handle cyberbullies when they target your child. Check out these sites for information on bullies:

  • KidsHealth
  • It Gets Better Project 
  • Common Sense Media 
  • Cyberbully411.org
  • Stopcyberbullying.org

Social media poses the most threats online for your kids. However, it is not the only site you need to watch out for. Kids can be lured to dangerous sites through popups on web browsers and search engines. As such, monitoring their online activities should never stop at social media. 

How to Protect Your Kids From Cyberbullying 

Learn more details on how to keep kids safe on social media today, and your family will be safe. When cybercriminals target your child, you are not safe as a family. Here are a few ways to keep the child safe:

  • Learn More About Social Media 

Create time and learn more about social media to keep your teen safe. The online space has greatly changed since you created your social accounts many years ago. Even if you have social accounts that you use occasionally, you still need to take time to learn what is new. Learning how to keep kids safe on social media requires knowing which sites are appropriate for your children. While there, check out the new ways predators lure kids into scams. 

  • Limit Access to Social Media Until a Child Reaches a Certain Age 

Social media sites require that users be at least 13 years old. If they are younger than that, the child can only create an account with the permission and supervision of the parent. You can search for age-appropriate social media sites so your kid’s psychological state is not dented at a young age. 

  • Check the Child’s Privacy Settings 

Study more on how to keep kids safe on social media by learning to adjust the privacy settings on social sites. Social sites like Facebook add security measures that protect children and adults. However, you must adjust the settings to regulate who interacts with your content. Ensure your child’s social media profile is private so only a select number of people can see the photos and the content they upload.  

  • Warn Kids Against Posting Personally Identifiable Information 

So many people feel safe to share their personal information on social media. However, cybercriminals are always looking for these details to create a personal profile they can use to steal your identity. Ensure the kids do not post email addresses, home addresses, phone numbers, and photos that can affect their safety. 

  • Help Children Create Strong Passwords 

A strong password should be at least six characters and should not contain names, dates of birth, common numbers and letter sequences, or any details someone else might guess. You can combine numbers, letters (both small and capital), and special characters to strengthen the password. After every few months, you need to change the password. 

  • Restrict Sites They Access 

It is easy to be lured into porn sites from social media. Use parental controls to ensure they do not access gambling and porn sites and other sites that might erode their morals. This way, they will always stay within social media, where you can monitor their activities. 

  • Create Rules and Guidelines for Social Media Use 

A child must balance social media or internet usage and other activities. Once you learn how to keep kids safe on social media, start by setting the ground rules on how long the child should be on social sites and who they can interact with. Guide them on accepting friendships so they do not invite strangers to their accounts. These rules and guidelines will enable the child to make the right social media decisions. 

  • Talk to Your Child 

Young people have taken their social lives online – you may be unable to stop that. However, when you keep an open line of communication with your child, you can identify when they are facing a bully or predator. Engage them in discussions about their social life and what you expect of them. If you create enough trust, they will tell you what is happening, and you can guide them accordingly. Even if they do not share everything that affects them online, guide them in interacting with friends and strangers online.  

  • Monitor the Child’s Online Activity 

Most parents may not want to snoop into the social lives of their children – which is what monitoring apps help you do. If you are in an open dialogue with the kids, you can explain why and how the monitoring goes. The monitoring should be safety-centered so your kids do not feel like you are reading their messages with friends. You can use products such as Securly and Bark, which filter content and alert you when some content feels off. If, for instance, a stranger sends uncalled-for messages to the child, you get a notification. Again, you are notified if the posts on their timeline share too much sensitive information. 

  • Read More About Cyberbullying 

Through stopbullying.gov, the National Crime Prevention Council, and UNICEF, the government offers content to help parents learn how to keep kids safe on social media. You need to know your rights and how to respond to a bully. Parents threatening their children’s bullies is common, but there are better ways to handle the cases, such as reporting them to social sites and authorities. 

  • Restrict Social Media Use 

Your child can grab a book, watch an educative show, play offline games, or visit friends in their free time. This is the easiest way to avoid cyberbullies. Although you may not fully keep them off social media, you should at least limit their time on the sites. 

How to Keep Kids Safe on Social Media

Steps to Take If Your Child Has Been Targeted Online 

Your children may never tell you when someone bullies them online – they fear you will take the phone away. As a parent, learning how to keep kids safe on social media will include identifying signs that your child is a victim. Some of the signs to observe include:

  • Quiet periods and nervousness after being online 
  • Spend less time online even when they have the resources needed 
  • Problems sleeping and eating even though they are healthy 
  • Trouble focusing on tasks at home and in school 
  • Not wanting to go outdoors

If you observe radical changes in the child’s behavior after their interactions online, take steps to protect them from bullies. How do you keep kids safe on social media? Follow these steps:

  • Find the bully. Talk to the child to expose the bully. If the bully is someone you know, handling the issue will be easier as you can contact them or their family members. 
  • Contact the bully’s relatives. If you know the bully’s parents and interact with them, talk to them about the bullying. This move can exacerbate the bullying if the bully’s parents cannot handle the issue. As such, contact them only if you know the parents pretty well.  
  • Notify school authorities. The school authorities can help you know whether bullying has exacerbated into real-life bullying within the school. These officials can also handle the bully professionally as they may have programs and strategies to handle bullies. 
  • Report the bull’s social media account. Most social sites allow you to report complaints against accounts that harass others. The sites can revoke the bully’s account if they deem the complaint real. 
  • Contact the police. If you fear your child is unsafe, report the bully to the police. Only report to the police if there are threats of violence, hate crimes, child pornography, and extortion, among other dangerous vices. 

Safe Social Media Platforms for Kids 

Facebook, Instagram, X, and TikTok are good social media sites, but their content needs to be filtered for children. As such, you should look for sites with age-appropriate content and where you know how to keep kids safe on social media. When the child is 13 years or older, they can use these adult-oriented social media sites.  

The best sites for children include:

  • GoBubble 
  • PlayKids Talk
  • Spotlight
  • Grom Social 
  • PopJam

Most of these social sites are designed for pre-teens. They teach them how to interact online, preparing them for mainstream social media sites. The accounts require that a parent or adult provide email authentication, and they do not collect personal information such as home address. The sites have moderators 24/7, so no kid can post inappropriate content. Even if you do not know how to keep kids safe on social media, the moderators keep your child safe. Again, you will have control over some of the aspects of the account, so your child is always protected. 

Children older than thirteen can still use these sites, but most will want to access Facebook and Instagram, among others. 

Conclusion

You cannot keep your children from accessing social media. However, you can guide and control what they access and how they interact with friends and strangers online. Although kids might resent your ways, you must make them understand the dangers lurking in social media and what is at stake. It would help if you learned more about keeping kids safe on social media from different sources so you are well-equipped to help the kids.

Again, ensure you do not endanger the children through the content you post. Sometimes, parents are eager to post important milestones for their kids, which can lead to trolling. You want the children to avoid growing up to see memes created using their photos. Restrict the information you upload online so your children can learn from you as they grow up. 

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