Making the Internet a Safer Place for Children with ESET’s Safer Kids Online Initiative
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Today on the blog we’re talking about making the Internet a Safer Place for Children with ESET’s Safer Kids Online Initiative. Zoey and I both take a very proactive role with our children, who are both home educated. Internet safety is a top priority for us, because it’s an excellent learning tool, especially in this day and age of learning. Read on to see how we keep them safe online, and how ESET are utilising their online space to encourage a safer internet world for children.
The Importance of Internet Safety for Children
As adults, we’ve all seen the dangers of being online. From scam emails to dangerous links, we know it’s important to keep ourselves safe from things like fraud, but how do we keep our children safe? Not only could they receive suspicious links, they’re also more vulnerable when it comes to online bullying, harassment and other manipulative people hiding behind screens.
It’s really essential we, as their caregivers, give them as much age-appropriate information and protection as possible, as well as space and time to talk about any bad experiences they may have had whilst online.
How We Keep Our Children Safe Online
Zoey and I have always talked to them about online safety, and we also spend time with them whilst online when we can. However, it’s not realistic to be around them 24/7, watching and waiting for something bad to happen. This kind of behaviour wouldn’t build trust, and it certainly wouldn’t allow us to get other things we need done outside of our family home in time. We’re nearby always, and we often get called by both of them if there is any sign of bullying online, but it’s also important to give them the tools to protect themselves as they grow older.
But how can we ensure they have all the information and support they need?
ESET’s Safer Kids Online Initiative
‘ESET is committed to making the Internet a safer place for our children’
ESET has created a wealth of online resources for children and families to help encourage a safer online environment. Safer Kids Online was established to help children stay safe online, and they’ve worked closely with Internet Matters to produce these resources. Internet Matters is a not-for-profit organisation who offer the tools and resources needed for UK families.
The online resources are really interesting, fun and extremely educational. There are a selection of fun, yet thought-provoking videos, including:
- Oversharing on social media
- Sending selfies
- Cyberbullying
- Influencers
- Online trolling
- Fake profiles and online predators
These videos are really useful, and I imagine most children would be keen to watch them. Who doesn’t love fun illustrations and stories?! These will not only entertain, they’ll make you and your child think carefully about how we interact and behave online. I love the reminder that our behaviour is just as important as others whilst online and interacting with others.
I really loved the video about body image, with the story told through animals, and advising not to try and emulate influencers. The main message being, ‘be you’ and ‘be unique’ was really refreshing and not wholly focused on just sharing personal information. It’s great to see a campaign that focuses on mental health, loving yourself, and being kind to others.
George and Molly really enjoyed watching the videos, and George thought they were interesting and helpful. They loved the interactive part of making a decision based on the story within each video. You can check out one of the video below, or head to the Kids Zone of Safer Kids Online to see more!
You can also download a workbook to look at with your child. George and I had a great time looking through it and chatting through each page, as well as creating a poster.
Check out our little video below to see what we discovered…
We think ESET has created an amazing online hub to help support parents/caregivers with the aim to make being online a safe, fun and positively engaging experience for everyone.
Let us know how you keep your children safe online, as well as your thoughts regarding the Safer Kids Online platform in the comments below…
Thanks for joining us today, and we hope you’ve found our Making the Internet a Safer Place for Children with ESET’s Safer Kids Online Initiative helpful.
