Having a family takes on lots of responsibilities.
While some of those responsibilities might seem mundane at times, others are crucial.
One such crucial task at hand is making sure your family is always safe.
Being safe is not only about keeping criminals from coming through your front or back door. It also involves your computer and any mobile devices.
With countless people plugged in to the Internet, it should not be a surprise that there are problems.
From identity theft to online stalkers, there are many opportunities for harm.
That said what are you doing to keep your family safe from online attacks?
Be Pro-Active in Staying Your Distance from Trouble
To do everything to keep your family safe from online attacks, remember:
1. Commonsense
Often, it all boils down to commonsense in using the Internet safely.
Avoid giving out any personal information that could come back to haunt you.
This includes the following:
· Personal – Never provide home address, phone, Social Security number, and bank account.
· Travel schedule – Never use social media sites to say you are away from home. Doing so is equal to leaving your front door wide open for strangers to walk right in.
· Work and school details – Telling the online world where you work and where your children go to school is a no-no. Though not the norm, there have been instances where stalking took place at a workplace or school.
2. Searches
If you have some fears about someone online, will you be pro-active in learning more?
For instance, what if you discover someone online is talking to your teen daughter? Is it safe to say it is nothing more than innocent chatter?
What if it turns out to be more than that?
Although your daughter says everything is fine, you have your suspicions.
You could go for a criminal records search. This is so you can see if the individual conversing with your daughter is on the up-and-up.
While they may very well turn out to be a non-threat, don’t take your chances.
Whenever you have questions or doubts about someone, learning more is worth your time.
3. Education
Back to the earlier commonsense; educate you and your family on the Internet.
Who people say they are behind a computer screen is much different than what one states out in public. As a result, take everything said in the former with a grain of salt.
You can also turn to countless blog posts covering the topic of how to safely use the Internet.
Such posts are especially important when you have your children going online.
Whether on a family computer or with mobile devices, you want your kids as safe as possible each time they click on.
Although you might come across as a little too protective, don’t worry about that.
Being too protective is much better than looking back one day with regrets.
Those regrets may be that you did not do enough to keep your loved ones safe from online attacks.