ONLINE SAFETY

In today’s digital world it is becoming more and more difficult to maintain the boundaries you’ve established for safety in your home.  Take a look at some of these alarming statistics:

  • On average, children 8-18 spend 7.5 hours a day in front of screens for entertainment alone — which amounts to 114 days a year.
  • The average age of first Internet exposure to pornography is 9 years old.
  • 67% of kids admit to clearing their browser history to hide Internet use from their parents.
  • 90% of children ages 8 to 16 have viewed pornography online, most while doing homework.

 

Do you know what your kids may be doing online?  This e-book from Covenant Eyes will help you navigate the dangers found in online interactions and help you teach your kids safety and integrity online.

 

Your child’s protection is no longer limited to only a computer; they can now get out through gaming systems, iPods, tablets, and cell phones.  We believe that protecting your children from these online dangers is vital and we’d like to share a few ways that you can safeguard your loved ones.

 

We recommend implementing the following:

  1. Password protect your cable/satellite: This is usually a 4 digit pin code that you set up on your box.  You can setup rules based on the tv/movie rating. We recommend blocking R and M ratings to start with and then make additional decisions based on the age level of your kids.

  2. Keep the computer in an open area with high traffic. Do not allow computer access in your child’s bedroom.  This would also apply to gaming consoles.  Consider password protecting your computer profile so that they can’t log in without your approval.

  3. Setup WiFi access times. Most WiFi routers today come with mobile apps that you can use to control connected devices and when they can access the wifi.  Consider setting up time restrictions on your children's devices so that the internet cannot be accessed when parents aren't awake or able to monitor activity.

  4. Set up a daily schedule for computer/console use and enforce it. The latest Windows operating systems come with built-in parental controls that allow you to create a profile for each child and setup when they can log in, what programs they can use, and even what websites they can visit.  It can be set so that only specific websites that you approve can be visited and no others. Microsoft Family Safety

  5. Setup parental controls on your gaming consoles:

    Playstation: The Sony PlayStation® systems include parental control settings that restrict the playing of content with parental control restrictions (such as game or video content) or the use of the Internet. You can adjust these settings so that content intended for mature audiences cannot be viewed by children. 

            PS3 - PS4 - PS5

    Xbox: The Xbox console lets you customize and manage your family's access to games, movies and television content. The Xbox parental controls can be used to control the console itself and access to Xbox LIVE. Parental controls allow you to control things such as:
    • Which games can be played.
    • Which movies and TV shows can be watched.
    • How long each family member can use the console on a daily or weekly basis.
    • Whether or not someone can access Xbox LIVE.

      Xbox Family Hub
    Wii: Parental Controls allow you to block specific features using a 4-digit PIN. Other features are automatically blocked once Parental Controls are enabled. The following can be blocked:
    • Access to Wii Software
    • Viewing of certain content that is not subjected to game rating
    • Exchange of user-generated content
    • Use of points

      Parental Controls
  6. Install Internet Filters & Monitors on all computers and smart phones. Third Party software can be installed to help protect against pornography. The software simply monitors internet traffic and sends regularly scheduled email reports to accountability partners that are set up.  You can add on additional features for an additional cost that can even block inappropriate sites, searches, YouTube videos, and more. While there are many choices out there for these kind of apps, two popular ones are X3Watch and Covenant Eyes. Both products have a number of additional resources for families and churches on their websites.

    X3Watch - http://www.x3watch.com
    Covenant Eyes - https://www.covenanteyes.com


We commend this to you and pray that it will help fight against the struggles that our children and teens face on a daily basis.

 

Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.