La Piazza

As you know, at La Piazza we usually give advice to improve the safety of adolescents. Yes, those adorable half-child, half-adult creatures so vulnerable to the dangers of the net. Today we’ll talk about how parents can tell if their teenagers may be having an addiction type of issue or could be misusing the Internet. Actually, this article applies to anyone, regardless of age, so read carefully!

Although I don’t think it is clinically proven that an Internet addiction pathology as such exists, it is an ongoing debate and it is worth taking a moment and considering whether we could be making an excessive or inappropriate use of the net.

Let’s see. In my spare time, I browse the Internet an average of 40 minutes a day on weekdays and about twice that time at the weekend. I use the Internet as a means to entertain and inform myself. I love reading various national and foreign newspapers so the Internet for me is one of the best inventions ever. It allows me to catch up on the latest events either through digital newspapers or through social networks such as Twitter.
Also, a while ago, a good friend of mine recommended me the game Angry Words (online multi-player word game) and I confess to be hooked to it. My only consolation is that it’s an instructive game the whole family enjoys, even though we are starting to get nastily competitive to see who gets the “angriest word”.
The rest of the time I spend on the Internet I normally use it to look up recipes, watch YouTube videos, listen to music and little else.
My husband also makes a similar use of the network and my daughter, in full pre-teen stage, really likes playing different apps and listening to music. She also uses the computer daily for homework or school work, but more out of obligation than pleasure, so that does not count. We try to make reasonable use not prevent us from making another different type of activity.

I personally think that, a person who feels fascinated by a hobby and invests in it huge amounts of time has the ability to learn, encourage creativity and communication. But I think the key for it not to become something harmful is based on making a conscious use of the Internet, knowing that many games, videos, activities, etc. may have an addictive component. Once you are aware of this, it is imperative to manage the time spent on the Internet to prevent it from turning into something harmful.

At home we know that Angry Words is addictive, and if we did not say Enough!, we would probably spend hours and hours on the computer that would stop us from doing other kind of activities together. The difficulty lies in establishing the limits between an intensive use of technology and the emergence of the direct consequences of the activity.

Take this extreme example: two teenagers from Rocklin (California) drugged the parents of one of them to avoid the ban on the Internet after 22:00 (see full story here).

So, how many of the following statements do you identify with?

• You spend more and more time online to be in good spirits.
• You are not able to reduce or control your access to the network, however hard you try.
• You invest considerable amount of time in Internet-related activities, (purchase of books, testing new browsers, organization of downloaded material, etc.).
• Social activities, whether professional or recreational, diminish or disappear because of your Internet use.
• You stay connected despite knowing that this is a persistent and recurring physical, social, occupational, or psychological problem (sleep deprivation, marital conflicts, job neglect, feelings of leaving loved ones …).

Dare you share with us how much of your free time you spend online? Have you stopped doing things because you are compulsively glued to your computer?

Published by Leyre Velasco, 3rd May 2012

Today in La Piazza we present a quick 10-question post for parents to test how safe their teens are online. So, if you are a parent, sit down with your kid and before he/she answers the questions, explain to him/her that this exercise is to be done jointly. The purpose is for both of you to know if he or she is safe when using the Internet and to improve security measures if necessary.

Do stress that, although he/she may not be aware of it, the Internet entails serious dangers such as fraud, sexual harassment, bullying, etc. Do not alarm him but speak firmly. The reason why most teenagers don’t take enough precautions is because they are either misinformed or disinformed.

Finally, ask him/her to be honest about it. The whole point of answering the questions is not for your teen to get a grilling but actually for you as a parent to learn how to protect your most precious treasure: your child.

Because the Internet is just another road you have to teach your children how to cross. And this is a road they love to cross. Plus, they do so every day.

Instructions

Ready? Here go the questions. Ask your kid to write down the answers on a piece of paper. Once the test is completed, add up the points per answer (check section Score points) and finally, check the Results section to see how safe, risky or dangerous your kid’s online practices are.

1. Does your screen name identify you as a boy or a girl?
2. Have you ever posted any personal information of yours or anyone else without explicit consent?
3. Have you ever uploaded your picture or family or friends without your parent’s consent?
4. Have you ever filled out online forms, questionnaires, profile pages without your parent’s consent?
5. Have you ever purchased anything online without permission?
6. Have you ever shared your passwords with someone other than your parents?
7. Have you ever downloaded and installed software without your parent’s knowledge?
8. Have you opened emails from total strangers?
9. Have you ever agreed to meet in person someone you have only met online?
10. Have you ever been involved in chat sessions with people using vulgar expressions or sexually explicit language?

How to calculate your scores

• Add 1 point if you answered YES to questions 1, 2, 3 and 6
• Add 2 points if you answered YES to questions 5 and 7
• Add 3 points if you answered YES to question 4
• Add 5 points if you answered YES to questions 8, 9 and 10

Results

If you scored… 0-2 points

You are SAFE!

Well done!!! You are cautious when you go online to chat with your friends because you are well aware of the dangers the Internet entails. Your passwords are usually strong, mixing alphanumerical characters, you never share them with anyone and you certainly think twice before you download applications. You never, ever chat to strangers and your online friends are not only acquaintances but people you know well. And you frequently talk to your parents about your online habits.

Our advise: Keep it up and teach your fellow students and friends how they can also improve their online experience.

If you scored… 3-4 points

You are at RISK!

OK, you would never meet anyone you don’t know online and you would never share information with strangers. However, you have uploaded pictures of friends or members of your family and have not told them, you don’t think downloading cool apps is dangerous and have done so occasionally. If you get a friend request from someone you don’t know, you do tell your parents.

Our advise: There is certainly room for improvement in the online safety department. You are aware certain security measures have to be taken when going online but you are still dangerously chancing it!  So, overall, you need to make sure you don’t share any personal information at all. Also, choose strong passwords and review your online practises with your parents. Afterwards, do take the test again.

If you scored… 5-26 points

You are in REAL DANGER!!!!

Your online profiles describe you so well that you have included your postal address and school you go to, plus all kinds of pictures of you and your friends, family, pets, etc. You use the Internet pretty much for everything, to download all kinds of applications, meet people online, chat, etc. You are an extrovert and have accepted friend requests from people you don’t even know because you think if he is one of your friend’s friends, it is OK. Sometimes you have chatted with people who used “bad words” but never told your parents because they will probably worry too much.

Our advise: You must RADICALLY change the way you use the Internet. First of all, sit down with your parents and review the personal information you share with others. Also, remove any strangers from your friends lists. Should you ever encounter strangers online, do speak to your parents about it. Change your passwords and choose strong, alphanumerical ones. Finally, take the test again until you get the lowest score (0-2 points – Safe).

Posted by Leyre August 19, 2009

The first thing you must do in order to protect your computer and data is to create a safe password, especially in these days, with the prominence of social networks. People tend to use easy-to-remember passwords, but this is a risk, as hackers can then easily access your confidential information. It is common sense, or would you leave the door of your car unlocked just because it is easier to open it? You wouldn´t, right? Same happens with password safety. Here go a  few useful tips.

DONT´s when creating a password

1. Never use passwords that can be found in a dictionary. They can be cracked with clever – and even not-so-clever – password hacking programs.
2. Never use password containing less than 8-characters long. The shorter the password is, the easier it gets to guess it.
3. Never place numbers after the password if the password Word can be found in a dictionary. It is best to insert numbers and special characters in between a word or replace some of the letters by special characters, for example,  Charles – Ch@rlE$
   This is a little safer.
4. Your cat’s name is not unique. Leave it alone Ditto your name, your birthday, your mum’s maiden name or your birthday.

DO´s when creating  a strong password

1. If you want to have a password which is easy to remember but hard to guess, memorize a sentence. Then, use the initial of each of the words of the sentence as the password. Then add a final point or a special character  (!, @, #, $, %, ^, &, *) at the end, followed by two numbers and a capital letter.For example: April is the month of rain – ( Aitmor@05 )
2. Always use a password that is between 8-14 characters, minimum 8.
3. Combine capital and lower case letters in your password.
4. And if you do need to write it down, try not to do it on a piece of paper entitled “Internet Banking Passwords”
5. Change your password every 30 days.
6. Make sure the user name and password are different

For more information, check out PandaLab´s blog post on Social networking, Passwords and privacy and watch the following video to quickly review the most important tips!!

What do you think about this article? Do you want to share your experiences with us? We would love to hear from you!!

Posted by Leyre, August 13th, 2009

Now that we are on holiday with the kids, it is a great opportunity to teach them how to play online in a safe way, as the risks of using the Internet are on the increase, especially for young people, the most vulnerable. The Web can quickly turn from a being a source of entertainment to a serious problem if children are not alert to the dangers. At Panda, we are socially responsible and we recognise and support projects that contribute to the secure use of new technologies, especially for children.

The dangers in instant messaging, email, social networks etc. can be prevented by following a simple set of guidelines that we want to share with you:

• Speak to your children.
• Learn yourself, and pass the knowledge on to your children.
• Set firm rules for using the Internet.
• Forbid children from giving out confidential information.
• Teach your children to be wary of appearances.
• Install an effective security solution.  The Parental Control feature lets children use the Internet safely by restricting access to inappropriate Web content. Check the latest Panda Internet Security 2010 and Panda Global Protection 2010, they both feature it!

Check Panda Security´s Kids on the Web campaign for detailed information.

On the other hand, cell phones are now widely used by children and adolescents. The risks, therefore, that they face in this respect are similar to those commented above concerning PCs, especially what regards instant messaging services (chatrooms) and spam, in cases related to pornography.

So, restrict the use of mobile phones which include risk features only to older children and give them advise on how to make a safe use of their cell phone.

Once you set limits to your children, tell them about the risks of going online, and teach them how to handle uncomfortable situations, together you can create a fun and safe environment for your children online.

So now, time to enjoy yourselves, adults and kids!! Check out these fun sites and have a super time!

Discovery Channel for Kids
Cartoon Networks
Disney Channel International site
Pocoyo

Share with us other sites you and your children play safely online ¡¡