It can be difficult knowing all the different settings that are available on different devices to help protect children, this includes allowing or disallowing chat, friends, spending money, content filters and much more. On these pages you will find the details, as well as non-technical instructions, which will help you understand what is available to you and how to set up your child's devices.
Gaming consoles and devices - https://www.internetmatters.org/parental-controls/gaming-consoles/
Smartphones - https://www.internetmatters.org/parental-controls/smartphones-and-other-devices/
Broadband and mobile networks - https://www.internetmatters.org/parental-controls/broadband-mobile/
Entertainment and search engines - https://www.internetmatters.org/parental-controls/entertainment-search-engines/
With many children and young people using social media it is important to understand what features are available to you to help protect your children. This is also important because for the most part, all privacy settings are default off when a new account is created, but also because some social media providers change their features quite frequently, e.g. TikTok.
Take a look at this link to see what is available to you and how to set up your child's social media. We would also advise doing this with your child so that you can discuss the features together.
https://www.internetmatters.org/parental-controls/social-media/
For some parents, online gaming can be a mystery when it comes to their children. Equally there are lots of myths, studies where statistics have been cherry-picked, questionable information about screen time and gaming disorder and much more.
Here is an article that many parents will find to be of interest, complete with advice and guidance.
You can find the article here: https://thewhitehatter.ca/online-gaming/.
It is clear that children and young people are enjoying engaging with the online world more and more, but when they're talking it can sometimes sound like an alien language. Do you know your 'dub' from your 'nerf'? Are you 'cheugy'? Being able to pick up on some of the language used is really important.
Internet Matters have put together a glossary of terms which will help you to get your head around some of these terms.
Here is the link to the glossary: https://www.internetmatters.org/connecting-safely-online/helpful-social-media-safety-guides-and-resources/online-safety-glossary-of-terms/.
Credits:
Created with images by MclittleStock - "office stuff and devices floating with blog" • DC Studio - "Dolly shot of woman sitting on gaming chair" • miglagoa - "Black game controller in close view" • Diego - "Next generation white game controller isolated on black background with colored lights illuminating it. Close-up. Selective focus."