Cybersafety

With the movement back to remote learning this term, it is essential that we stay mindful of the potential issues for our children as they are on the internet more regularly and for longer hours than ever before.

Technology is developing at such an amazing rate that we are constantly having to update our skills and ideas about how it can enrich our lives and how we need to protect ourselves and our children.

All of this makes the management of technology a mine field for our children and therefore for us as parents. Parents need to stay abreast of what their children are using and how they are using it, they need to embrace the technology themselves so they understand the possible issues their child may face as they navigate the ever growing programs/apps out there. We need to know what our children are using and who has access to them whilst they are on the internet. The latest website we have been alerted to is Omegle.

What is Omegle - From their website

‘Omegle (oh·meg·ull) is a great way to meet new friends, even while practicing social distancing. When you use Omegle, we pick someone else at random and let you talk one-on-one. To help you stay safe, chats are anonymous unless you tell someone who you are (not suggested!), and you can stop a chat at any time. Predators have been known to use Omegle, so please be careful.

If you prefer, you can add your interests, and Omegle will look for someone who's into some of the same things as you instead of someone completely random.

Try Omegle on a computer too. It has video chat!’

Omegle also gives an option to ‘Go to an adult site instead if that’s what you want.’

We have been made aware that Omegle is becoming more popular for children to visit and use, and reports have been made with regard to inappropriate contact with children.

Help for Parents

Parents can download and install software that assist them to manage their child’s use of these apps and the use of their mobile devices. For further information on this please visit

https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents, http://sipbench.eu/

The following web page has a list of parent control tools that have been tested: http://sipbench.eu/index.cfm/secid.7/secid2.4#tools and www.ParentKit.co

There are a number of great sites around that can assist parents and children to understand the complexities of the technology they are living with. A great place to start is the eSafety Commissioner's site: https://www.esafety.gov.au/

There are some basic safeguards all parents can put in place to help protect their child:

Keep your home computer is a busy area of your house and don’t allow your child to access the internet on their personal/mobile devices in unsupervised areas.
Understand the importance of technology in your child’s life, in particular the importance of online friendships and peer groups.
Set up email and chat accounts with your child. Make sure that you know their screen names and passwords and that they don't include any personal information in their online profiles.
Learn how the various social networking websites work. Learn alongside your child, let your child be the "expert" and ask them to help you understand the tools they are using online.
Know the ‘Terms and Conditions’ of the sites your child is using, including the age limits for access.
Build trust with your child. Set time limits, explain your reasons for them, and discuss rules for online safety and Internet use. Ask your child to contribute to establishing the rules; then they'll be more inclined to follow them.
Regularly go over their "buddy list" with them. Ask who each person is and how your child knows him or her.
Discuss cyberbullying with your child and ask if they have ever experienced it or seen it happen to someone.
Tell your child not to respond to any cyberbullying threats or comments online. However, do not delete any of the messages. Instead, print out all the messages, including the e-mail addresses or online screen names of the cyberbully, or take a screen shot if printing is not possible.
Tell your child that you won't blame them if they are cyberbullied. Emphasize that you won't take away their computer privileges - this is the main reason kids don't tell adults when they are cyberbullied.
Let the school know if your child experiences cyberbullying.
Let the school know if you have concerns about any of the sites your child is visiting. We can help to alert other parents.

Please contact the school or your child’s teacher if you have any concerns or questions.

Please stay safe!

Robyn James

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