My son is 16 years old and I am worried when he goes on the internet. I hide our keyboard and set up our webcam to tape to see if he goes on it as I am worried about predators. I check his email account through a program that records keystrokes. However I still fear for his safety. What else can I do to prevent him?
2006-12-23 10:22:10 · 40 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Parenting
He shouldn't be allowed on the net unless you are there to supervise period.
2006-12-23 10:25:05 · answer #1 · answered by m930 5 · 0⤊ 2⤋
...Wow. First off, you need to cut your son a little slack. It's perfectly normal for a 16 year old boy to have access to the internet. After all, YOU are using the internet, why are you trying to deny him the right to use the computer? Sure, predators are out there, but think about it: There are predators EVERYWHERE. And 9 times out of 10, when a child is attacked.. be it physically, mentally, sexually, or otherwise.. it's by someone the child already knows. So, what are you giong to do now, cut off all contact to the outside world? I'm sorry for being so blunt about this.. But, COME ON. You are restricting your son too much. Hiding the keyboard? Recording his every move and keystroke?? These are the kinds of things that make children WANT to rebel against their parents. All you need to do, is simply have a talk with your son.. explain the dangers of the internet. Make sure he knows not to give out his last name, phone number, or any other identifying information.
If you're that worried about this "dangerous" internet.. Get rid of your computer. If it's so bad.. you obviously have no reason to be on here, either.
2006-12-23 10:31:59 · answer #2 · answered by [we're all mad here] 4 · 6⤊ 0⤋
You need to get real, your son is 16 not 12 if you have explained to him about the problems that can be faced by on-line predators you will have no problem. Are you going to let him grow up, or smother him his entire life behind a wall of fear. You are going to destroy the trust that your son has in you by reading all of his e-mails and checking every keystroke. If you don't want him on the Internet you will have to follow him around every second of the day and hold his hand and make sure he never sees a computer again. Stop trying to keep him from growing up.
2006-12-23 10:33:49 · answer #3 · answered by Lurch "You rang" 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
You might be a little TOO over protective.
He's sixteen years old. I could understand if he was like ten or something. I started using the internet when I was around thirteen.
There are ways you can have a parental block on there. I'm not exactly sure how to do it. It varies with different computers I think. And I don't have kids, so I don't have to worry about it. Anyways, it blocks all porn sites, and things like that. There's no reason to forbid him from the whole computer, unless he is doing wrong. And trust me, not all kids his age are dumb enough to talk to predators and give out their addresses and phone numbers. You need to teach him not to do that stuff. And learn to trust him. That's how I was treated when I started using the internet, and I have never done any of that stupid stuff.
2006-12-23 11:15:09 · answer #4 · answered by Annamarie 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Password protect internet access so he cannot get on it. Or you can call your service provider and see if they have a program that only allows him to go to certain sites that you pre approve. The only issue is if he is 16 do you want to ban him completely? Honestly first off you don't want him to feel like he has to sneak around to access the internet because 1 you are not treating him very responsibly for his age and 2 if he has to do it behind your back that will make him less likely to come talk to you should he ever be approached for fear he did something wrong. I would say sit down and set some ground rules for the internet. Move it into a public area like the living room where it can be at least somewhat monitored by site. Finally have some trust and communication with him.
2006-12-23 10:29:53 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
At some point you have to trust that the job you did as a parent from 0 to 16 has had some effect on his thought processes and values. While 16 is nowhere near "grown" it certainly is close enough to loosen the reins. Make him aware of the dangers of net predators, and how to discourage them. Check back in periodically.
Otherwise, give him some privacy. If you don't, he will begin to rebel against your tight rules and the internet will be the least of your worries.
2006-12-23 11:33:14 · answer #6 · answered by Kevman9999 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Honey, this child is going to have access to the internet from home, school, libraries, community centers, job access centers, and any other community settings such as friends! The best thing you can do is to stay out of his business and give him a talk about internet safety. It is also unfair to your son to be looking over who he's talking to. You should get some literature on internet safety and statistics on internet safety and just review it with him. Make sure he is internet smart and so on. Because if you don't, what you dont want to happen, may happen. Remember, children rebel, if you dont let them do something, they WILL FIND A WAY! Again its better if they do it at home then at a PUBLIC library or school.
2006-12-23 10:29:40 · answer #7 · answered by Kristin S 2 · 4⤊ 0⤋
All you can do is put the parental blocks on whatever sites you don't want him to go on to, but he is 16yrs old. You need to sit down and have a talk with him. If you keep doing the sneaking thing and being to protective he might re bell. I'm 21yrs old and when my mom was to protective on a certain thing or subject, it made me do the opposite. If you have a talk and give your child a certain amount of space then everything should be ok. But not saying let him do whatever he wants, just give him the opportunity to be responsible. Good luck.
2006-12-23 10:27:17 · answer #8 · answered by Jazz21 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Have it in a common, frequented area and just keep a constant eye on him. We have ours set up in the kitchen. However, that still isn't 100% proof. You need to talk to him about the dangers of predators also and show him news articles where some have been trapped or even killed by talking to strangers. I think there are softwares out there that can lock him out out of chatrooms or notify you if he ever goes into one. Check places like Best Buiy or Tiger Direct.
2006-12-23 10:30:02 · answer #9 · answered by Pinolera 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
well he's 16 which means he will be off to college in a year or two. maybe you should lighten up. i go to school with kids that were raised like this and they took college as an opportunity to go absolutely wild. just teach him to stay away from the predators and let him use the internet. keep an open and honest relationship. you're kids will do better if you learn to trust them as they grow older.
2006-12-23 10:32:14 · answer #10 · answered by morequestions 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
take the cord away - viola - no internet.
seriously - at 16 if you trust him enough and you have covered your bases and he knows the protocol, relax a bit. Kids are smart enough to figure it out.
Set your internet options at a fairly high restrictive setting. It will be real annoying for awhile, but he may get used to it. Talk to a guru who can give you some practical tips with setting up your options properly.
2006-12-23 10:28:13 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋