It is important to teach children the essence of self-confidence at a young age. Their awareness about the need to be confident will help them develop socially and mentally. Confident people find it easier to boldly make the decisions that will make them successful in their adult life. As parents, helping the children to accept themselves regardless of what the society thinks is a good way to inspire confidence. Parents should also avoid bullying the child or make comparisons that can hurt the child’s self-esteem.
In these times, children who have access to the internet encounter many situations that can hinder their confidence such as cyberbullying, and other unwanted solicitations.
Cyberbullying occurs on the internet. It involves the strong use of abusive language and derogatory sentences to offend and confuse other people. Over the years, cyberbullying has become a great concern in our societies; the following statistics have been discovered regarding this issue:
- 25% of teenagers who are active online admit that they have experienced some form of cyberbullying.
- Female internet users tend to be more actively involved in cyberbullying.
- Parents hardly know their children are being bullied online because only 1 in 10 teenagers will inform their parents about their encounter with cyber bullies.
Cyberbullying is targeted at teenagers who are still trying to discover and understand their personalities.
Regarding online predators, they are a significant threat to young children who use the internet. Their targets include boys and girls. Due to the virtual nature of the internet, these predators can assume the identity of an innocent person to lure their victims. The statistics regarding online predators is as follows:
- There are over 500,000 online predators actively using the internet daily;
- 87% of these attacks are orchestrated in private chat rooms and via instant messaging platforms;
- 56% of the children who have encountered predators online confirm that they were asked to send their pictures.
Sexting can be described as the use of explicit videos, pictures, and messages in a public or private online chat. The statistics regarding sexting are as follows:
- 15% of teenagers admit that they have sent nude pictures of themselves to people they have never physically met.
- 57% admit that they were encouraged to post sexually explicit pictures online.
- 12% of girls are bullied into participating in sexting.
Considering these cyber threats and the presence of online predators, it is important that parents know what their children are doing online. Parents can guide and protect their children from the imminent dangers of the online sphere by using parental control app to monitor their children’s browsing behavior. These apps give parents the following access:
- monitor apps that offer instant messaging (Facebook, WhatsApp, Snapchat);
- view browsing history;
- access to messages in the inbox and outbox including deleted messages;
- monitor incoming & outgoing calls made from their children’s mobile devices;
- monitor the frequently used apps to identify potential threats which can be blocked;
- track location through GPS and geo-fencing;
You can protect your children from cyber bullying and predators online by monitoring their online activities. Children who encounter these issues online content with depression and social isolation which can destroy their confidence. Parents should strive to help their children become confident in their abilities and features while protecting them from cyberbullying and online predators.
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