Tech expert Robin Raskin will share her counsel April 24 atLancaster Country Day. Online resources:
By Kelly L. Watson, Correspondent
From scammers to stalkers, phishing to pedophiles, the Internetcan be a scary place.
How can parents protect their children? While technology expertRobin Raskin doesn't have a foolproof solution, she does have plentyof good advice to help families stay safe.
Raskin will visit Lancaster Country Day School April 24 to give afree public talk on Internet safety, "Raising Kids in a DigitalWorld." She is a columnist on Yahoo! Tech and has been the editor-in-chief of FamilyPC. She's also authored a number of books aboutparenting in the digital age.
"What I tell parents is, this is not going away," she said in atelephone interview. "This is not a fad. ... It's important that kidslearn in school and in safe environments how this stuff reallyworks."
Teaching children about the Internet can be tricky, however, whennot all parents feel comfortable going online. Not to worry, Raskinsaid: "It's hard to keep up with, but there are other things you maynot have firsthand experience with - methamphetamines, for example.But you know parenting, and that should give you comfort."
Most of the problems children have online now stem from freesocial networking sites: places such as MySpace.com and Facebook.comthat invite people to post profiles with pictures and personalinformation. Kids think they're getting their own room to decorate incyberspace, Raskin said. Few realize the information on their profileis accessible to everyone.
"I can walk into Lancaster County, not knowing anything aboutLancaster Country Day school," Raskin said, "... and if I work at itfor 15 minutes or so, I can get a pretty good idea of who goes toschool there, where they live and who's friends with whom. Whenparents see that, they realize the magnitude of what they're dealingwith."
Most social networking sites have privacy options that let userschoose who can access their profiles. Raskin encourages parents totalk to kids and explore privacy options together. It's also OK toset boundaries, especially with younger children. MySpace prohibitsanyone under 14 from setting up an account; Facebook users must be 13or older.
Web sites such as Club Penguin might be a good alternative forthose not old enough for other sites. Though it's targeted to kidsages 7 through 14, Club Penguin is open to everyone. Raskin suggestsintroducing the site to younger children under certain guidelines,such as limited computer time and the number of designated friends.
She calls this kind of regulation an Internet driver's license."We don't give anything to kids without trying to phase it in," sheexplained. "You don't give your kid a thousand dollars the first dayyou start giving them an allowance. I think the idea is to take themto being full digital Internet citizens slowly and manageably."
This means keeping in touch with kids about their Internet use andinstalling a filter for those under 12 years old. Raskin alsoencourages parents to use their own experience as a teaching tool.
"Let's say you get one of those scam letters from the Nigerian whois leaving you a million dollars," she said. "It's great to call yourkids over and say, Look at what I got on the Internet today. It kindof scares me because I almost fell for it.'
"I think when you show that we all have questions about this,you're setting an important example. ... You've started somethingthat says I care about this part of your life.' "
Learn more about Internet safety at Raskin's presentation at 7p.m. Tuesday, April 24, at Lancaster Country Day School, 725 HamiltonRoad. For directions and parking information, seelancastercountryday.org.
For more information about Raskin, see her Web site atwww.robinraskin.com.
www.clubpenguin.com: A virtual social networking world forchildren of all ages.
www.blogsafety.com: A forum for teens and parents, withinformation on blog safety.
www.famster.com: A private social networking site for families.
www.wiredkids.com: A site devoted to children's online issues.
www.getnetwise.org: Technology tools to help protect familiesonline.
www.internetsuperheroes.org: A site that encourages responsibleInternet behavior in children.
www.yahooligans.com: A fun, searchable directory for kids 7through 12 years old.n
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