5 Tips for Keeping Your Kids Safe on Social Media

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Keeping your children and teens safe is hard enough in the physical world, let alone the cyberworld of social media. But you don’t have to stand by and hope for the best—you can take action to help keep them safe online. Here are five social media safety tips for kids and parents.

Social media safety tips for kids and parents 

1. Familiarize yourself with the different social media apps. These days, there are a lot of social media apps that your child may want to use. Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok are just a few apps that kids can access. Ask your child which app or apps they want to use. Read the reviews, age limits and fine print of each.

2. Get a head start. Create an account on the social media app that your child wants to use. This will allow you to know how the app works, what your child can and can’t do, monitor your child’s activity and posting, and adjust the privacy settings.

3. Educate your child about posting on social media. It’s important that your child understands how social media works. For example, deleting a post doesn’t mean it is gone forever. People can take screen shots of the post or other apps could store the save the post on a third-party site. Also, posting inappropriate content can impact their reputation. It may not seem like a big deal now, but inappropriate posts can come back to bite you as you apply for a job or college.

4. Stress the importance of privacy. Many social media apps require users to provide names, dates of birth, and hometown. Some apps have the option to add even more information, such as school names, hobbies, and places of work. Teach your kids about not over-sharing. Remember, these types of personally identifying information, if exposed in a data breach, could make your kids vulnerable to identity theft.

5. Monitor your kid’s social media accounts. As a parent, you have the right to monitor your kid’s social media accounts. Check the privacy settings on each app regularly. Receive notifications when they post. Learn the “dialect” of social media. Kids have a language of their own when it comes to communicating online. Make sure you know what they’re talking about.

We know that social media can be toxic for everyone–especially for adolescents. At the end of the day, we all have a responsibility to create safe and positive spaces online for our children.

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About Darrigo & Diaz, Tampa Bay Personal Injury Firm

Serving Clients in the Tampa Bay Area Since 1999

The personal injury law firm of Darrigo and Diaz has been serving clients throughout the Tampa Bay area since 1999 and is an esteemed member of the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum®. Founded by Attorneys Ron Darrigo and Board Certified Civil Trial Attorney Nadine Diaz, the firm specializes in auto accidents, slip & fall injuries, products liability, premises liability, and all other types of personal injury accidents. Our firm also provides tough criminal defense for individuals accused of committing crimes in Florida. We are passionate about not just protecting the rights of our clients, but also protecting their futures. We work tirelessly toward securing the most favorable results possible for the various criminal cases we handle.

Call 813-437-9077 or contact us online to schedule your free case consultation.