Keeping kids safe from cyber predators

With the explosion of Internet and cell phone communications--including social networking sites, music and video sharing technology and the ever-popular "texting"--keeping our kids out of the reach of predators has become increasingly difficult. 

We may frequent YouTube, Twitter and Facebook, but predators do, too. If our kids share too much, they might just open the door to your home, and your computer, to identity thieves and predators, without your knowledge. It seems our kids are not only precious to us. They are precious to identity thieves and online predators as well.

The Federal Trade Commission and its partners in the OnGuardOnline.gov project produced the Net Cetera Community Outreach Toolkit to provide teachers, parents, grandparents and others who care for kids with important information about helping kids stay safe online.

The toolkit includes Net Cetera, a guide for parents that has already been distributed to over 4 million; Heads Up, information for kids; presentation slides and notes; videos for parents and for kids; and ideas to help you keep kids safe online, with practical information about cyberbullying, texting, file-sharing and using mobile phones. All the materials, including CD's and DVD's are free and provided in English and Spanish. The toolkit and additional materials can be found here.

For additional tips see earlier blog;

What can parents do to protect their children?

Watch this video from Net Cetera;