Social media is a beautiful, informative and open environment on which to learn, find out new things, understand new skills, and speak with friends. But for every one of these positives the reverse is also true.

The negative side to social is vast and we are aware as to the pitfalls and negatives that can arise within these platforms and how such positive opportunity and open communication can turn negative. And fast.

We have pulled together our top tips on keeping your little ones, and perhaps yourself, protected online:

Learn how to speak social media!

What platforms are they using? Can they live broadcast, curate and share video content? How ‘open’ are their profiles? It is important to set security levels appropriately so that that not everyone and anyone can post or engage with them.

Age ain’t nothing but a number

The minimum age policy for the majority of social media platforms is 13 but it is very easy to get around this by adding fake information. Make sure to have a chat with your kids about this and outline you will be monitoring things.

Location

Does the platform publicly show where the user is at that time? It is possible on all platforms to hide your location and we would recommend doing so. For example Snapchat’s Snap Map allows for pinpoint accuracy. (Scary!)

Have access

Ensure you have all passwords and log-in details for all platforms and have the conversation with your children that you will be checking in on the accounts from time to time. Explain it is not to check up on them but instead to keep them safe. If they want to use the platform, that is part of the deal and not negotiable.

Complaints

You can report comments / posts / conversations on each of the platforms. Don’t let trolls away with their behaviour and also teach your children that there are very real implications to actions.

 

We are big social media fans here at Approach towers but are always on the look out for top tips on dos and don’ts, keeping safe online, trends, and ensuring our clients are kept updated. Please feel free to share your advice and updates with us!

 

Image is courtesy of Pixabay