Join me in saying NO to Facebook til age 13.

[weevilswobble]

Just that really. I'd like DD2 to have a childhood without the drug of Facebook. They can live without it, we can say no!

The 13 age barrier is totally arbitary and based on some random US law about data protection. Do you really think that at midnight on a child's 13th birthday they instantly start to use the internet resposnibly? No, they don't.

I totally agreee with the posters who allow (closely controlled) access at a younger age. Facebook is great when used correctly

I say No I've seen the bullying and the harm it does at a close hand and I wouldn't want my dd to go through what my friends dd went through. So it's a no from me!!

DD aged 13 got it at 10. Big mistake. She no longer has it and is now 13 and a half (of course we are the parents from hell and she has no life etc etc...). Her other siblings will not be getting it either.

It is FB. If it is well policed, and lets face it with a 6yo it is likely to be, I don't see the harm

Facebook is over 13, because as a previous poster mentioned, it is against federal law in the USA to hold info on under 13s.

So to let your under 13yr old on it is breaking federal law. If facebook were to be found to be holding info on under 13s, they may get prosecuted & that may well put the future of facebook in jeopardy. So then perhaps no one will get to use it.

I police my DD1/DD2 facebook we have an open relationship and are close and talk about safety etc. It is cheaper than providing them with endless credit for texts !! I know their passwords and often it is used simply for putting up cute photos of the puppy and chit chat about homework etc. They are 11 and 13. It also helps them keep in touch with cousins overseas

I didn't have to face this issue - my DD didn't ask for underage FB and now she's turned 13 she still doesn't seem interested.

Instead she does this really weird thing called 'Real Life Friendships'

If your child lies about their age to sign up underage, does that age then roll forward or can you correct it? I would be worried if a 12 year old was apparently 16 on FB.

DD wanted Facebook in yr7 because all her friends allegedly had it. I was faced with the choice of setting up an account for her that we both have access to or one of her friends showing her how to set up an account herself. I went for the supervised account. There was one spate of bullying where I got involved with blocking people, but mostly it's just waffle. There is some chat about homework too.

My kids have real friendships but just a quick way of arranging meeting points etc. We have real life friendships do we not but here we are conversing on Mumsnet . No need to be worried about age if your child is sensible enough to only accept people she knows ! Mine also have skype and twitter and a phone !

There is some chat about homework too.

DDs school has its own chat/email system - so they can do this sort of stuff which is useful, but its only other pupils, and if there was bullying there (unlikely, they'd have to be eejits to do it there) then the school would sort it out.

imnotmymum has nailed it really. It's just an extension of friendship. It's the way of the World now so best to embrace it, sensibly and with common sense.

Yes there is the secret FB my DD2 friend was told not allowed and set one up as "all" her friends have it and she was a bit left out with the games etc on their. Surely this is worse !! Thanks M1 sensible and common sense and do not listen to the media scaremongering !

I have a 12 (13 in may) and she has been told no and doesn't have it. Not sure if she'll even ask then TBH but I shall probably encourage her to have a highly supervised account then so she can learn to use it, and it's ups and downs.

DS set up a secret account at 12. Boy did he get bollocked! He wasn't very good at covering his tracks and had made his elder sis a friend! We didn't force him to close the account though as I figured he would do it again and in a much more underhand way if he wanted to, so I'd rather he was secure and heavily policed by me than spending all his time on their hidden.

I have seen the positives- the elder kids are friends with kids from primary for instance who went to other schools. I also know, in a very "hands off" way a bit of what's going on with DD1 at uni. Which is she's partying like mad but always appears, in the photos at least to be the least drunk of them all! I had a slight turn when she appeared in one photo with a huge black eye- looked very real but was for a dressing up thing-later photos emerged with friends dripping blood etc!

I'm pretty relaxed about internet-type stuff and probably would let DD1 have a FB account once she goes to senior school (in the same way I'll probably let her watch a 12-rated film before she's actually 12).

Social networking via the internet isn't something that's going to go away, and is something our kids will need to learn to be savvy about and do sensibly. Better IMHO to discuss these things with them at a young-ish age when they still listen to you!

Yes would not have an account at primary that not necessary at all same as I would not let my kids have a mobile in primary.

I agree entirely, no way my children are having Facebook accounts until they are at least 13.