Parents have so many things to worry about. We already know that parenting is a difficult task but the presence of technology and social media has made the process even more complicated. Digital parenting is all about becoming aware of technology and social media apps your kids and teens are using and ensuring they stay safe on the internet.
When kids and teens start using technology and social media for the first time, parents have a lot to worry about. They become nervous and agitated when kids and teens start using social media because they understand most online threats are lurking on social media platforms.
There are several reasons why social media can be a dangerous place for teens. Every now and then, we hear stories of teens being bullied online, their private photos and videos being exposed by their close friends, their private chats being exposed to various WhatsApp groups, and getting blackmailed by online predators.
Every teen should follow some important rules to keep themselves safe from online dangers on social media. They need to follow some guidelines to protect themselves from being bullied, blackmailed, disrespected and threatened while they are only trying to have a good time on social media. Parents can also play an important role in protecting their kids on the internet. Installing the best spy app for Android and iPhone on their smartphones can help parents keep an eye on their teen’s social media activity.
In this article, we will discuss some social media safety rules for teens so they can keep themselves away from all sorts of potential online threats. By following the social media safety guidelines, they can protect themselves from harmful online dangers. Let’s take a look at some important social media safety rules.
Go Through Your Privacy Settings
First things first, teens need to check the privacy settings on their social media accounts. In case they haven’t enabled the privacy settings on their accounts, they must get it done. Almost every social media platform offers privacy settings that need to be enabled to secure your account. With privacy settings turned on, you can limit who can send you friend requests, who can send you messages, and who can see your posts.
If teens do not check or update the privacy settings on their social media accounts, then people they do not know can see their posts and reach out to them. Most teens have the habit of sharing private posts without realizing what they are sharing. By posting such information, they expose themselves to online predators and cyberbullies that can use this information against teens.
Therefore, it is important for teens to keep their social media accounts extremely private. They need to set privacy settings where only their close friends can see what they have posted on social media.
Be Careful of Friend Requests
Social media is all about connecting and interacting with new people. Teens love socializing with their friends and family members on social media apps. Besides friends, they also meet new people and become friends with them. However, they need to be careful while letting new people enter their social media circle.
It’s common for teens to receive friend requests and new followers on social media apps. There’s no problem adding or following a person on social media when you already know them or have met them in real life. The problem arises when strangers try to add teens to social media. Teens need to be cautious when they receive a friend request from someone who is completely a stranger to them.
They need to play it safe here and only accept friend requests and followers who they know in real life. Often friend requests from strangers can turn out to be spam accounts. Many bullies and predators have the habit of creating fake profiles on social media to attack victims. Therefore, when a teen receives a friend request, they must decide whether or not they know that person. If they know them, they can go ahead and add them. However, if they do not know them, they shouldn’t add them to their account.
Think Before Posting Something
Teens should always be careful before posting something on their social media accounts. Most teens do not think much before posting a photo or video on their social media account and then regret it later. Even if they decide to delete that post, they can’t be fully sure whether or not that post has completely vanished from the internet.
On the other hand, even if the post gets deleted from the internet, there’s a chance someone might have saved that post or taken a screenshot of it and shared it with some other person. So, if you do not want your private post to become viral on social media, you need to think before putting it out there.
It’s important for teens to never share their private information with anyone on social media. Information such as home address and phone number should never be disclosed to anyone. They should keep all their information private and never share it with anyone.
Never Share Your Location
No matter what happens, teens should never share their location with anyone on social media. It is common for teens to share their location on social media. For instance, they put a check-in of a place they are visiting on Facebook and let everyone know where they are at a given moment.
Their location can be easily tracked by a potential bully or predator who has been keeping an eye on them for a long time. It is easier for them to reach that place and get in touch with the teen. Therefore, teens should always avoid posting their whereabouts information on social media.
Use a Monitoring App
Another best approach to staying safe on social media is having a monitoring app installed on the teen’s smartphone. This step should be taken care of by parents as they are the ones who would be monitoring their teen’s activities on social media with the help of a monitoring app.
They can install iPhone or Android spy apps on the teens’ devices and monitor every activity taking place on their device. They can keep an eye on their teen’s text messages, phone calls, emails, instant chats, location, and internet browsing history.
If someone tries to send an inappropriate message to your kid, you can instantly know about it and take some necessary action against it. Always educate your teens about social media safety before allowing them to access the world of the internet and social media.
