Should Parents Monitor Their Kids on the Internet?

With the emergence of many monitoring software, there have definitely been just as many disadvantages as there have been advantages. However while we can pro-con this issue all day, there are certain issues and questions that need to be answered. Prominent among these questions is whether it is ideal for parents to monitor the actions and forays of their children on the internet. While there are those who feel otherwise, we believe it is necessary. Very quickly, here are our reasons for taking this stand:

1. Parents will need to perform a periodic examination into the sites that their children are visiting. By doing this, it will be possible for them to keep tabs on the type of websites their children are visiting, how often they visit these sites and how long they stay on these sites. Gaining access to this type of information will increase their probability of being able to detect any potential issues and deal with them before they escalate into something more potentially damaging. There is a plethora of monitoring software that will give patents the ability to monitor your children’s internet usage, whether they’re aware or not. However, t be n the safer side, it is better to ensure that this extends beyond internet usage. Social networking and multi-platform messaging sites could also benefit from a thorough monitoring. With software like WhatsApp Spy, parents will have easy access to messaging sites and have access to what their children are currently doing.

2. Children do not realize the danger and frequency of occurrences of cyber identity theft on platforms such as Facebook and Twitterwhen they provide too much of your personal details on them. Due to a lack of IT education (which probably isn’t in their curriculum yet), they most probably believe that these platforms are safe and just go ahead divulging information after information. The task falls to parents to ensure the safety and security of their children by preventing these children fromputting an excessive amount of their personal information online, especially when building their profiles on social media platforms.

3. With the large amount of platforms that are on the online atmosphere today, it is pretty easy for a child to wander off easily and get ‘lost’ in the internet; stepping into unsafe websites, the dark web, etc. some of these websites ask children to provide certain personal information and unknowingly, these children might. In truth, there is a lot of danger that children can unknowingly put themselves and their parents into by giving out these pieces of information online. There is a multitudeof dangerous and unethical personalities who are looking for the first opportunity to compromise the identity of other people. You definitely won’t want your children falling victim to these people. Thus, the need to monitor their actions online.

4. These days, Trojans, viruses, spyware, and malware seem to be in no short supply. There is probably no limit t the amount of Trojans and viruses that a child can easily download to a hard drive without knowing. Once these viruses and Trojansmake their way into your computer and gain access to certain components, it’s a wrap. They will be able to initiate and start numerous actions related to identity theft. Your passwords are no longer safe, your personal files could be copied or corrupted, etc. there’s really no limit to the harm that these viruses and Trojans can cause. Identity thieves can easily have access to your personal information and compromise them.  By all mean, you should make sure to avoid this problem. The gravity and implications are pretty serious. Parents will need to be aware of these files and what they constitute and will also have to monitor their children so as ensure that they don’t unwittingly download these files and cause untold harm to files and sensitive information.

5.  For older teens, it is very easy for any of them to dabble into social vices such as internet fraud and credit card scams all in the name of making a quick buck and getting money off the internet. You should know that the online safety of children doesn’t apply to children alone. The fact that a person is 18 doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t need to be secured from online harm. As a matter of fact, parents will actually need to be more vigilant when dealing with internet application so as to be able to prevent any serious financial mishaps that a teenager might get himself (or herself) into.

It should be noted that these are our opinions. You’re entitles to yours, even though they might differ.