As Internet users celebrate Safer Internet Day, Facebook shared the best online safety tips to help parents and children stay safe on social media platforms.
– Before children enter the world of social media, have a conversation with your child on technology and social media, the advantages as well as the downsides.
Research shows that children as young as six have access to smartphones or tablets. If your teen is on Facebook or Instagram, consider friending or following them.
– Take note of age restrictions. Facebook and Instagram require everyone to be 13 years old before they can create an account. It is best to pay attention to the restrictions to avoid trouble.
– The same rules for the offline world apply to the online world. Just as children are encouraged to not talk to strangers, young social media users should think twice before accepting a friend request from a stranger. It’s also advisable to not overshare.
– Help children manage time online and try to be a good role model. Set time restrictions on when your teen can use social media or be online (for example no texting after 9pm) and make sure to follow the same rules.
– Help them check and manage their privacy settings. Once your teen has set up a social media account, they can use tools and settings to help them manage their accounts.
Facebook has privacy settings to control who can friend them, who can see their posts, and if they share details such as their location by default.
Instagram offers a host of flexible tools to keep teens safe online including bullying filtering, caption warnings and sensitivity screens.
Teens can also restrict unwanted interactions on their profiles and easily report accounts, comments and posts for bullying.
– Tell them to report if they see something concerning or disturbing. There is a link on nearly every Facebook and Instagram post for reporting abuse, bullying, harassment and other issues. Facebook’s global teams work 24/7 to review things you report and remove anything that violates our Community Standards.
IOL TECH