Northland Public Library | Kids | Parent/Teacher Info

Online Safety Rules for Kids

Kids should never give out personal information such as telephone numbers, addresses, school names, or last names in e-mail messages or in public online forums. Be very cautious about this, unless both you and your child know the person/persons with whom you are communicating.
Encourage your kids to confide in you. If something doesn't seem right, for example, if they are being asked to respond to something in an e-mail message that makes them feel uncomfortable, ask them to bring it to your attention.
Kids should never arrange to meet with someone in person without adult permission. If your child does become friends with someone on the Internet and would like to meet them in person, go with them and arrange the meeting in a public place.
Point out that they cannot believe everything they read on the Internet!
Kids should never send photographs of themselves to e-mail buddies without checking with you first.
Point out to your kids that some people may portray themselves to be someone they're not.
Set up rules about what time of day your kids can go online, how much time they can spend online, and what sites they can visit.
Your kids should never enter an on-line area that will cost extra money or give out a credit card number on-line without your permission.
The best way to really monitor your child's computer usage is to keep the computer in an area where you can see what they are doing. You should become more computer literate. The more you learn about computers, the easier it will be to monitor your child's computer usage.