Trend Micro Incorporated released the findings of its Global Consumer Technology Use and Security Study. Conducted across seven countries including Australia, Brazil, France, India, Japan, the U.K., and the U.S., the survey asked 1,419 parents on how their kids access the Internet and the steps they take to protect and educate them about staying safe online. Parents all over the world share common concerns about their children’s growing use of technology, but embrace education and parental-engagement to impede the risks.

 

Overall, the survey revealed that even though parents around the world are concerned about technology’s impact on their children, they welcome what this new paradigm can offer, allowing their kids the privileges of owning smartphones and using social networks at early ages. Understanding the risks, parents surveyed say they are taking an active role in providing guidance and oversight of their children’s technology and Internet use. 

 

Most parents are like-minded, sharing concerns about their children's increasing use of the Internet. Nevertheless, parents in some countries worry more than those in other countries. For example, 56 percent of U.K. parents surveyed believe the Internet is safe for kids compared to only 27 percent of parents in India. 56 Percent of Indian Kids surveyed have a presence on any of the Social Networking Websites.

 

The majority (73 percent) of parents whose children have an account with social networking sites indicated their children's online privacy on social networking sites is important whereas 47 per cent of the Indian Parents are monitoring their Child’s activity Online every week. More than half of the parents whose children use social networking are worried about their children’s privacy on these sites 'frequently' or 'all the time'.  In Brazil, especially, one third of the parents worry about their children’s privacy on social networking sites 'all the time' whereas in India 51 percent are concerned about the privacy of their kids posing a similar situation.

 

According to Mr Amit Nath Country Manager India and SAARC Trend Micro, the study is encouraging as it shows the level of engagement by parents around the world in their kids’ use of technology. Consistent parental involvement is the first step toward responsible, tech-savvy kids.  The next step is to make sure parents are getting the right facts and resources so they can, in turn, guide their kids.  

 

Nearly half of parents surveyed say their kids have accounts with social networking sites (SNS) that require a minimum age of 13 but the average age of their kids who use these sites is 12. Children in Brazil are joining social networking sites at a younger age than most other countries, at an average age of 9. Kids are joining Social Networking Sites at an average age of 14. 76 percent of parents surveyed say they are friends with their kids on social networking sites and about two-thirds of them are monitoring their kids’ SNS use at least once a week. More than half of parents (51 percent) surveyed believe their kids act responsibly on social networking sites. Of U.S. parents surveyed, 67 percent believe their child acts responsibly when it comes to sharing personal information.

 

While the survey asked parents about smartphones and their kids, far fewer of those surveyed had actually purchased such a device for their children. Globally, about 17 percent of parents have purchased a smartphone (as opposed to a feature phone) for their kids. This percentage is highest in Brazil at 27 percent and lowest in Japan at 5 percent. 88 percent of Parents surveyed have given safety guidelines to their Children while using a smartphone. The average age of a child receiving a smartphone was 13. Globally, parents are not passive bystanders and are implementing household rules on smartphones: 86 percent surveyed have given their kids guidance on safe and responsible use of the phone.

 

In Brazil, over 90 percent of parents who bought their child a smartphone indicated they have given their child guidance on how to use their phone appropriately. Globally, about 27 percent of parents surveyed indicated they would be likely to purchase a safety application for the smartphone that would help guide their kids to use it appropriately.

 

Tips for Parents on Educating Their Kids

For parents who are not quite ready to tackle their children’s use of technology, there are a few ways that they can get up to speed. Lynette Owens, director of Trend Micro Internet Safety for Kids and Families (ISKF), has several tips for keeping kids safe online: 

 

1. Help your child stick to sites that are appropriate to their age.

2. If applicable, make sure kids use strong passwords and the strongest privacy settings that still allow them flexibility.

3. Ask them to share only information that is absolutely necessary on any site or online service, and to ask you if they are not sure.

4. Advise them to connect with those they already know or are certain can be trusted.

5. Urge them to treat others with respect and to never post or share anything they wouldn’t mind being shared broadly.

6. Teach them to be wary of any offer that seems too good to be true.  Tell them to trust their instinct if something seems suspicious and tell you about it.

7. Consider not allowing your child to use a geo-location service which automatically broadcasts their physical location to others, unless it is absolutely necessary. 

8. Always have up-to-date, reputable security software installed on every device you are using to connect to the Internet/social networking sites. 9. Cybercriminals will, for the most part, be unable to harm you because good security software or service will know that the links/sites they are leading you to are malicious and won’t let you visit them.

 

-ITvoir NewsDesk