Topic : Safeguarding Your Kids from Internet Predators

i want  myspace but  i can`t get one till i`m in middle school next year what do you think about myspace

Dont worry my parents wont let me get a myspace either. And I am going into highschool next year. I dont really want one anyway. There are so many people who you dont know. That is what I am always told. I just go to other sites that are a little smaller. And they are sorta like myspace. Dont worry about it.

I am an admitted overly protective mom.  We have one computer and it is in the living room.  I watch my 13 year old almost constantly on the computer.  Notice I said 'almost'.  I went to check the mail one day while she was on a popular childrens doll site.  Fortunately, her older sister was nearby in time to see a man ask my daughter for a picture of her breasts and offered to send her naked photos.  We can never be too careful. 

My daughter is no longer allowed on the internet unless one of us is right by her side.  It sounds like a invasion of her privacy but it is much safer.

I'm a bit concerned.  So many parents here are talking non-stop about how to control the internet.  What ever happened to sitting down with our children and discussing the dangers of the internet in detail and helping THEM to have a knowledge of warning signs to look for?  Telling them what information to never give out, how to beat the feeling of flattery that comes with someone being interested in you and what the results can be?

I have little doubt that if my 11 year old daughter is faced with any signs of an online predator that she'll immediately end the discussion or come and get me to see what I think.  She has been using the internet for about 3 to 4 years now.  I won't say that I'm so insane that I don't limit the sites that she visits... heck- I even bump into a porn site on accident every so often.  But parental controlls are there for a reason- on both the computer AND the tv. 

I truly think that the amount of monitoring that you give your children depends completely on how much you trust them.  I still glance over my baby's shoulder as I stroll through the living room, by all means.  But I also know that my daughter understands the consequences of talking to strangers- whether in front of our house or on the web- and she will do just as much as I will to protect her and guarantee that those consequences never happen.

The internet is definately a very scary place!  But knowledge is power for even children- and we can only protect them from the world for so long before society starts expecting them to be intelligent enough to make their own decisions. 

I think a LOT of people might be surprised if they started laying information and choices at their childrens feet a little more and tried to GUIDE them into a good decision instead of brow beating them with whats right. 

It's really no wonder there's teenage pregnancies and drug addicts all over... what got these kids in trouble in the first place (at least in my opinion) is the simple fact that they just finally made their first decision on their own at 16 & 17... is it any wonder they screwed it up??

My daughter is 14 and if left to her own devices would be on the internet at all hours, as she is unable to stop herself, and always needs "5 more minutes"

I have now password protected all the computers at home, so when she needs to go on-line she has to ask me to  give her access.  I therefore know when she starts to use the computer, I give her a time limit and when the time is up I make sure she logs off.

After a few weeks, she has actually said that it is a relief not being tied to the computer as she has time for other interest and appreciates the time she is actually "on" or with her friends.

I feel that we must not be browbeaten by our kids - we are parents first and if we feel what they are doing is not right we must act on that feeling - it is not easy but peace of mind is a great reward.