EARLY YEARS: Safeguarding your child’s digital interactions during summer break

ROANOKE, Va. (WDBJ) - With every click or swipe, kids are potentially exposed to predators and cyber bullies.

Dr. Steve Webb is a leading online safety expert. He is the founder of Safe Secure/School Systems, and is the author of the book, “Education in a Violent World.”

“The first things parents need to understand is it’s no longer the day when you can just have your child home alone, or in their bedroom alone and they’re quiet and you believe that that equates to them being safe. That day is over,” says Webb.

He says one of the first things a child predator does is try to get a child or teen alone, which is easier to do during the summer months.

“Understand that they’re not just trying to be your friend, they’re trying to find something to use to exploit you,” says Webb.

Predators, he says, also play upon a child’s emotions through commonly-used apps, like Discord and TikTok.

“TikTok vents, where kids and go on and vent their issues, and predators are very good at going on there and finding out, what’s your problems? Okay, I have a similar problem, and then we’ll establish a relationship. Discord has become so many different layers of radicalizing areas, so many different rooms, if you will, that kids can find information about things they should never be looking at,” says Webb.

Another cause of concern, the rising wave of anonymous messaging platforms, like NGL and Whisper. These apps allow users to interact anonymously.

But there are ways to protect your child. Webb urges parents to educate themselves about apps. Communicate with your children and ask if they’ve received strange messages or been cyber bullied.

Webb says parents should also maintain control of the app store password. Don’t allow any unsupervised downloads.

Finally, Webb offers parents this important reminder: “There is no right to privacy. You get to decide what’s on your phone that you have given that child.”