The impact of Covid-19 means both adults and children are spending much more time online attending meetings or lessons and browsing social media.

How can you protect your family from online crime?

• Make sure your children know the potential online risks and that there are untrustworthy people. Reinforce rules like ‘Never ever give out personal information like where you live or go to school’. Promote an open, honest relationship with your children – you want them to come to you if they are uneasy or unsure.
• Apply parental controls to limit the possibility of them stumbling across unsuitable content. Most applications, devices and browsers have parental control options.
• Encourage your children to use their devices in the common areas of your home. It makes it easy to have a quick peep over their shoulders. If they know they can be seen, it also deters them from looking at something they shouldn’t.
• Monitor online activities. If you need to reassure yourself, a quick check of the browser's history can put your mind at ease.
  
• Look out for changes in behaviour. If they are feeling threatened online, they may act more secretively, seem scared or anxious, or begin closing browser windows or turning off their computer or device’s screen when they notice you’re nearby.
  
• Set up reasonable usage limits and restrict browsing close to bedtime.
• Keep yourself educated on the risks and lead by example. Apply stringent security settings to your network and keep up to date with criminal tactics used on children. Google it if you need to know more!

Cybercrime is real. Empower your whole family with all the tools they need to surf safely and avoid being a victim.