First and foremost, not all online games are bad.
Secondly, though you can prohibit your kids from from playing at home, they can still play and use computers and game consoles in rental cafes or at friends’ houses. If you can discuss with your kids about risks and good judgment, they will be able to get the most out of the technology.
Here are a few of the safety tips that are worth looking at:
- Before your kids start playing, be sure your computer has an active and updated firewall, anti-spyware and anti-virus software.
- Be sure you know what kind of games your kids are playing with, and set parameters as to what games that are potentially harmful to them, i.e. violence, crime, sex, magic
- Let your kids know they can come to you when they feel uncomfortable with the game they are playing, or when someone is bullying them
- Play games with your kids and use this to connect or bond with them.
- Discuss with your kid how to block and handle a cyberbully.
- Discuss with your kid that s/he should use an alyas in user names
- Discuss with your kid not to reveal name, location, gender, age, or any other personal information or share this info to fellow gamers.
- Encourage you kid to use an avatar, not an actual picture.
- Limit their time playing games.
- Keep the computer out in the open so that you can monitor your kids’ online activities.
- Use built-in parental controls and Web browser advisors
- Don’t let your children download anything without your express permission.
- Don’t allow your kid to use cheat programs because most of the time, it is the transit point of a malware.
Thirdly, do not forget to spend time with your children, your loving presence and assurance is worth more than any game console =D
Care to share some safety tips of your own? Feel free to share in the comments section
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