Parents Giving Tablets and Phones to Children's Hands

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According to new Kaspersky research , most parents are concerned about their children's digital behavior and want to monitor and manage it. More than half (52 percent) of respondents from Turkey use parental control applications, and 44 percent regularly check their children's internet history. Additionally, 63 percent of parents in Turkey say that their children use digital devices under the supervision of a parent (55 percent) or family member (8 percent).

Children of today are much more technically advanced from an early age than previous generations. One of the main reasons for this is that they have access to technological toys and app experiences from a much younger age, as confirmed by a recent Kaspersky survey . However, children may not be aware of all the rules of the online world and these are gradually taught by their parents. When giving technological devices to their children, parents want to make sure they are safe online. That's why most parents try to monitor their children's online activities.

Most parents in Turkey try to control the videos their children watch (62 percent), the sites they visit (54 percent) and the games they play (63 percent). Additionally, 47 percent of survey respondents want to limit the time children spend on the internet and on their devices throughout the day.

Almost half of respondents in Turkey use healthy digital habits (44 percent), parental control apps (52 percent) and 44 percent check browsing history to monitor children's online activities. Nearly a quarter (21 percent) of respondents trust their children and do not control them in any way.

According to the results of the survey, the greatest responsibility for regulating children's behavior in the digital environment belongs to the family (87 percent). However, nearly a quarter (23 percent) believe teachers and schools should do this, and 27 percent think children should have personal responsibility.

To support this stance, 94 percent have discussed online behavior and digital etiquette with their children. Only 6 percent of respondents did not discuss this issue with their children.

Parents should negotiate the rules of the digital world with their children

Kaspersky Consumer Products Marketing Vice President Marina Titova comments on the results as follows: “ Because children today use smartphones and other devices from early childhood, they perceive the digital space as something natural and familiar, like going for a walk. At the same time, the digital space also has its own rules of safe behavior, many of which are learned from childhood, such as not communicating with strangers or going to unknown places. Parents can help their children learn how to be safe digitally and make their digital world safer by protecting them from inappropriate content and using a variety of tools and methods. For example, adults may encourage certain digital habits within the family or use parental control apps that can help control a child's online activity, as well as filter categories of wanted and unwanted content .”

Therapists Birgitt Hölzel and Stefan Ruzas from Liebling + Schatz in Munich add: “ When it comes to media consumption, parents do not trust their own children but the content on the internet. Regulatory control is therefore a good idea because it is consistent with parents' desire to protect their children. However, there is a dilemma about how much control is necessary and how much is too much. Independence is important and should be allowed depending on the age of the child. “It is also important to negotiate these rules with children, even if they can be challenging at times, ” he says.

“ If children respect rules and boundaries, they can understand them and the associated consequences. For this reason, we recommend that they talk to their children in advance and make use of child protection practices or enable security settings transparently. This is how active training becomes successful. Most kids get their first smartphone at age 9 or 10. It's a gateway to a global world filled with content that's educational and entertaining, but also problematic. “It is very important for parents to accompany their children step by step on this path and stay in touch as much as possible .”

There are some steps you can take to ensure children's digital safety:

• Children may lack knowledge about cyber hygiene and online security when using their devices. You can help by discussing possible scenarios with your children and setting an example.
• It's a good idea to install a parental control app on your child's devices. However, it is very important that you discuss this with your child and explain the reasons behind your actions.
• If your child is an active social network user and shares a lot of content, you should discuss the issue of oversharing and data privacy with him. You can also add each other on social networks and try to lead by example. Always check geotags on photos. Make sure no confidential information is visible in photos or descriptions. Follow the comments. Leading by example will also show your child how to safely share information online while maintaining their privacy.

Source: Flipboard

Editor: Güngör Yıldız

Images: cocumix.com

Website: www.cocumix.com