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By Tham Li Shin

Most children and teenagers spend most of their free time online and browsing the internet has been a favourite pastime of young people. Kids these days usually enjoy socialising and communicating with friends, learning and also playing games online. 

However, children risk exposure to online threats when they surf the internet. There will always be people with malicious intentions and your kids might unknowingly be communicating with them. Information from various topics are also easily accessible on the internet and so are unfiltered visuals that are not suitable for children. 

Cyber bullying is rampant especially on social media. When your child uploads a photo or a post, a cyberbully might take the opportunity to give unpleasant comments that would hurt your child’s feelings. Pornography is also another source that could be found on the internet and no parent would want his or her child viewing those materials. Children who are exposed to cyberbullying might also commit suicide or fall into depression. 

As such, parents need to be aware of these risks and accompany them when they are surfing the internet. Parents could also block websites that are not child-friendly so that their children wouldn’t be able to access them. Parents should also educate their children on online privacy and what they should or shouldn’t share on social media. It is also important that kids are educated on cyberbullying and how to protect themselves and also encourage them to report the cyberbullying act to their parents.      

If you as a parent are still worried about your child’s safety when they are online, you should check your child’s device once a week or monitor their online activities. You should also teach your child to not reveal personal information to any stranger online and only browse secure websites with the padlock symbol or those starting with “https”. 

** The views expressed on this opinion are of the writer and not the publisher.