"Do onto others, as you would wish done onto you" - The aim of our internet safety talks is to help keep it this way online too.
Thank you so much for a great information day yesterday. It was extremely beneficial for all and helped greatly to increase awareness; as we all know - education is key.
Kathy Ronaghan, Principal, Scoil Bhridge, Silverstream, Co Monaghan
Children are vulnerable, but they are even more vulnerable if they are not equipped with the knowledge to protect themselves.
We explain the importance of friend selection online. Often children accept friend requests from people they don’t know simply because they want to increase their number of friends online.
We give up to date examples of how strangers approach kids - their tactics are very clever, for example getting the name of the kids dog for later use - for example, 'Oh, I think I saw you with Snowy last week, where was that again'
We know the age limit with the strange exception of Facebook and WhatsApp is 13. However, it's important to remember that these Apps are free and their providers are desperate to increase revenue - especially struggling SnapChat.
Importantly, we have no protection from Snapchat and Instagram because there is nothing really stopping children from lying about their age when setting up their profile. This alone should set off alarm bells for Teachers, Parents etc.
In Primary school Instagram is the most popular social media platform, however, that changes to Snapchat as they move towards 6th class.
Online gaming has taken the world by storm and with device accessibility increasing daily it is more dominant than ever before. Online gaming dangers are real and children need to know that they are at risk. Strangers easily befriend child through online games and often gain heaps of private information without the child even realising.
We explain why they should use fake names, play with only friends and totally avoid interaction strangers.
Additionally, online gaming opens up room for cyberbullying. Games like DOTA allow children to interact with other players through text and microphones. Children could be placed in the same league as older children and even adults leaving room for unnecessary bullying and negativity.
We speak about the issues surrounding social media privacy profiles and why it is so important. Far too many children despite are using social media with no privacy settings and with little regard for safety.
We speak about the issues surrounding YouTube and why restricted mode is important. YouTube Kids is a safe environment that offers fun and interactive videos suitable for children. Updated Nov 2021 YouTube for kids
Kids are using social media and we know they are overriding age limits. Social Media privacy settings need to be secure and private, and children must know of the possible dangers facing them on Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, Instagram, etc. Predators and cybercriminals select vulnerable profiles, targeting unsuspecting children. Kids must be made aware of this and told what to do if they are ever contacted by a stranger.
Having access to the internet is hugely beneficial to children, however, children are not always aware of how to be safe online. We talk about E-Safety, What E-Safety is and share tips for safe internet usage at home.
Additionally, we talk about the dangers of using Snapchat and Instagram, and what children need to look out for. These platforms appear harmless but are perfect spots for predators. Our internet safety talks address these topics in a fun and interesting way - we usually have lots of questions after this section.
Although internet access benefits children, too much can become detrimental. We explain the importance of limited screen-time from an internet safety perspective and from a health and development outlook.
Contact us, for more information or to book an internet safety talk for kids in your school.
You can also view case studies and more testimonials about our safety talks here.
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