Somehow, it’s kind of become a commonly accepted notion that parents who monitor internet activity of their kids and who use social media monitoring services generally don’t trust their kids to make good decisions. But if you use this kind of software, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you don’t trust your kids and that you want to violate their privacy — it simply means that you want to protect your kids online. And there are three really good reasons why this software is extremely helpful:
- It’s completely understandable if you, as a parent, are a bit scared when you realize just how much inappropriate and dangerous stuff has become accessible to your kids, now that it’s so easy for anyone to get online. There far too many stories of predators in the news to allow any parent to feel comfortable letting their kid surf the web, and it’s far too easy to “just accidentally stumble upon” inappropriate websites.
- “Cyberbullying” is becoming a big problem among today’s tweens and teens, and if you’ve never experienced it yourself, all you need to know is that it’s like normal bullying, but about three times worse. Even though the majority of teens agree that cyberbullying isn’t okay, they don’t always recognize when it’s happening and/or they’re a bit hesitant to speak up against their peers who bully others.
- And finally, using software to monitor internet activity isn’t necessarily an invasive tactic that violates their privacy. There are tons of different social media monitoring tools for parents these days, and many programs come with internet content filtering software that only alerts you when there’s some suspicious behavior, photos, or Google searches going on. Although it’s definitely possible to find software that lets you sift through every single text message and website search, most parents really don’t want to do that.
It’s hard to determine where to draw the line when it comes to setting parental controls for internet activity; on one hand, you don’t want to shelter your kids forever and make them resent you, but on the other hand, you want to make sure that you protect them from the dangers of the internet. That’s exactly why this software exists, and why you aren’t being a bad parent if you choose to use it.
