This is how you can keep your kids safe online.

• What youngsters do online has a greater impact on their well-being than the amount of time they spend online.
  
• Parents, educators, and children should be informed about developing threats so that they are better equipped and confident in their ability to defend themselves.
• Many cyberthreats, such as social engineering, contact risks, and misinformation, can be avoided by using critical thinking.

In 2019, according to a Common Sense Media research, the average screen usage for children aged eight to twelve was five hours per day, while for teenagers it was well over seven hours. Unsurprisingly, during the global lockdowns, considerably younger children were increased exposed to screens, according to a recent study.

Concerned people are concerned about their children's excessive screen time or that the risks of using the internet exceed the advantages. The temptation for many parents is to focus on curbing internet use rather than allowing their children to safely participate online.

While the effects of screen time on children are still being contested, the UNICEF report Growing up in a Connected World reveals that what children do online matters more than how much time they spend online, and that children who are more engaged online are also better at managing online hazards.

Adults should learn how to properly facilitate children's online experiences rather than restricting their use of the internet. However, many parents lack the confidence to teach their typically more tech-savvy children in the face of sophisticated and rapidly expanding technologies.

It's vital to remember that danger does not always follow risk. Children who are exposed to online threats may not be harmed if they have the necessary knowledge and resilience to manage.

Children's Online Risks

The OECD Risk Typology offers a practical look at growing threats that parents, educators, and children should be aware of. These are, in a nutshell:

• Hateful, damaging, or unlawful content, as well as disinformation, are all examples of content risks.
• Conduct Risks: These are the risks that children face as a result of their own actions, such as sexting or cyberbullying.
• Online predators, sex trafficking, and cyber grooming are examples of contact risks that have been noted as a developing concern across OECD countries.
• Consumer dangers include unsolicited marketing messages and internet fraud.
• Privacy Risks: Many children do not yet comprehend the importance of their personal information or the privacy disclosures they are subjected to. Oversharing ("sharenting") by parents might raise privacy and security problems.
• Risks associated with advanced technology include the deployment of AI-based technologies, the Internet of Things (IoT), and extended virtual reality (XR). The Metaverse's vivid virtual environments bring with them new and intensified hazards, many of which are still unknown.

Parental advice

We must discuss online threats in the same way that we teach children about safety in the real world. A family agreement is a terrific approach to start the talk about these dangers and how to avoid them while also establishing appropriate screen usage limitations.

On children's smartphones, parental control software can assist prevent explicit or distressing content and apps. Before implementing these, it's critical to understand the rationale behind them and agree on ground rules that protect children's privacy.

Social engineering is one of the most prevalent methods used by cybercriminals, scammers, and child predators alike. This refers to manipulating a victim's emotions in order to prevent them from thinking critically. To avoid social engineering, children (and adults) must refrain from sharing too much personal information and exercise extra caution when anything elicits an emotional response.

Explain to kids that any communication that makes them feel scared ("there was a security incident"), rushed ("this will expire soon"), complimented ("I adore your profile photo"), or provokes fear of missing out (FOMO) should set up alarm bells.

Spotting social engineering frauds, internet fraud, disinformation, and grooming requests requires critical thinking and a healthy dose of scepticism.

There are excellent online resources for both parents and educators who want more information:

• Childnet is a charity located in the United Kingdom that empowers children and people who support them online.
• InternetMatters is a website that assists parents in keeping their children safe online.
• How to keep safe online, according to the Australian Government's e-safety commissioner.
• Stay Safe Online is a resource for parents created by the US National Cyber Security Alliance.

Educators and policymakers are both involved.

To protect children from online hazards, policymakers must ensure that cybersecurity awareness and critical thinking become a necessary life skill that is integrated into public school across topic curriculums.

For example, as in Finland, students can learn how easy it is to mislead with statistics in math, how to distort images in art, and how propaganda tactics in history can be linked to today's fake news and misinformation. The goal should be to be able to approach information critically rather than cynically.

This isn't to say that the burden of duty should fall only on the shoulders of children. Governments should hold technology and content providers accountable for ensuring that vulnerable groups are protected. To combat dangerous content and take concerted action to limit the risk of online harm, both the public and commercial sectors should interact worldwide with relevant working groups such as the World Economic Forum's Global Coalition for Digital Safety. The essential legal and policy frameworks should be enforced by governments.

Overprotective parents, according to Jessica Lahey's book "Gift of Failure," produce neurotic, risk-averse children who are unable to care for themselves.

By seeing the internet world through the lens of "autonomy-supportive parenting," we can educate children about the dangers while also giving them the freedom to experiment and fail or succeed based on their own choices.

Rather than attempting to limit every possible internet risk, parents and educators should concentrate on raising awareness and encouraging critical thinking, mindfulness, and self-control. These are necessary criteria for good navigation not only in the digital realm, but also in the real world.