The
Future
Parents Monitoring Their Children’s Use of the Internet
Northernstar
Northerstar@excapethematrix.com
In “How Many Children go Missing Every Year,” Christopher Beam reports that 800,000 kids are missing a year and only 58,200 of that ratio are non-family abductions. It is proven that the term “missing” can mean many things such as “a child who has run away from home counts the same as a kidnapped murder victim” (Beam). It’s a shame many children don’t realize they can talk to their parents about anything, and it falls on the parent for not conveying the message. One disgusting thing is when careless parents don’t protect their children in every type of way and form. It doesn’t imply they have to be overprotective with the child, but to be aware of the activities their child is engaged in; whether it’s the consumption of fast food, sport activities, completing school assignments or even being involved in social groups.
Today, children are being exposed to the usage of technology including computers, phones, and televisions, but there are invaders who make it unsafe to use the machinery. In a current study, it has been reported that forty-one percent of households keeps one computer in their room, and sixty-one percent have three or more computers at least in each bedroom. Using the Internet can be dangerous; therefore, American parents should monitor their children’s use of the Internet for several reasons.
First, American parents should watch out for sexual predators. It’s a law that adults can’t have any type of sexual relation with someone under eighteen and it’s ridiculous when adults do otherwise; especially men. A parent’s biggest fear concerning the Internets is that a predator, who was met on the Internet, could victimize the child. The risks include sexual molestation, abduction, child pornography, and harassment.
Most teenagers get on the Internet and it is becoming a risk factor of allowing young teens to have access to networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook, where kids display pictures and send messages to each other. The use of these two sites can be beneficial is “networking” aspects, but it can be relatively dangerous. It’s a good thing that it’s a certain age a child has to be before creating an account for either one of the sites, but a child could easily lie about their age. I lied about my age when I was a minor, and I am sure kids still do that. Another dangerous browser on the Internet is the visitation of chat rooms, 
which may be riskier than the aforementioned websites. Chat rooms are divided into various groups including lifestyles, movies, music and romance; and it allows a group of people to type in messages that can be seen by all the members in the room, but they also have an option to talk to a member one-on-one on messengers ran by MSN, AOL, and Yahoo. Screen names are displayed on the screen, but if an individual choose to give out their personal information such as their name, address, and phone number; it can be a really hazardous situation because people lie about their age, sexual identity, and giving the impression they are part of an organizational group such as the girl scouts.
The show Dateline had “special” episodes about a year or two ago; which showed pedophiles exchanged numbers, sending kids frequent mail, giving them money and gifts, and meeting up with them in isolated location. But they were all caught in the act while police and cameramen approached them. It is disturbing when a parent has no idea those things are taking place. Children can be naïve; therefore, American parents should watch out for those sexual predators.
In addition, American parents should protect their child’s privacy. It is very sad that people choose to give away someone’s personal rights by stealing information from them, or setting them up in sequential orders. Sometimes when kids give out information; it’s not to sexual predators, but it’s from pop-up websites that asks for the name, address, phone number and even information about the parents. I believe that children give the information without thinking of the worst-case scenarios because they fill out information when they are playing games, answering surveys, and even joining contests. Just about everything on the Internet is a set up to ruin people’s privacy. This is a huge problem because it is making it easier for “hackers” to steal anyone’s identity and max out their credit cards using the information given. Sometimes children are not aware of the serious situations that could take place; therefore, American parents should protect their children’s privacy.
Most importantly, American parents should make sure children do not lose their educational focus. I believe the Internet is entertaining and it could distract kids from doing more important things. The Internet has certain websites to help children do their homework, but I was a child before and I know that children do not get on there for homework. They get on there to chat, download music, and search for irrelevant things; and it seems to take up most of the day. The “YouTube” aren’t making any matters work either because kids come home from school and watch cartoons/shows they missed while in school. I must admit when I first got my new computer, I was addicted to it and couldn’t remain focus on my studies and it affect me to the point I was failing, and the Internet is not worth it at all. Parents should make the initiative to make sure they complete all home assignments and study for upcoming tests before they get on the Internet. Children may not find education thrilling, but American parents should make sure children do not lose their educational focus.
Parents have many fears about their children being on the Internet, and I do not blame them. While children are on the Internet, parents need to watch over them thoroughly and avoid private pirates. It is a proven fact that 80 percent of high school kids are the biggest users on the Internet (Beam). Parents must be aware of all the risks their kids are in; therefore, these were the reasons why American parents should monitor their children’s use on the Internet.
Work Cited
Magid, Lawrence. (1996) “Child Safety on the Information Highway”
http://www.safekids.com/child_safety.htm (June 2003).
Beam, Christopher. “How Many Children Go Missing Every Year”
http://www.slate.com/id/2157738 (January 2007).