Tell TalkTalk how you deal with internet safety in your home - £150 voucher up for grabs! NOW CLOSED

[MichelleMumsnet]

TalkTalk has asked us to find out what Mumsnetters do in the way of internet safety at home.

Here's what TalkTalk say, "The internet is at the heart of our homes and at TalkTalk we believe everyone should be able to have fun online without worrying about the safety of their family. As its Safer Internet Day on 11 February we are encouraging families to be safer online by activating our whole home online security system, HomeSafe. Exclusively available for TalkTalk customers free of charge, HomeSafe protects your whole home online through every device connected to your TalkTalk broadband.

Keeping you and your family safer online is our top priority which is why we have worked with The Parent Zone, to support Safer Internet Day, to share our tops tips for keeping children safe online. With this in mind why not test how internet savvy you are with our Internet Age Calculator. You can see how your internet know-how stacks up against a ten-year old."

So, what are your top tips for keeping your family safe online are? What are you and aren't you comfortable with your children doing online? What role does the internet play in your family life? Have you had any experiences where your child has done something they shouldn't have online? Whatever it is we’d love to hear your thoughts.

Everyone who shares their opinions on this thread will be entered into a prize draw to win a £150 Love2Shop voucher.

Thanks and good luck

MNHQ

[IWasThere4Aug12]

DS are 7&4 & more interested in sport than computers so at the moment only used for homework in communal area. We will put controls in place but I think talking to them about internet safety and people not being who they seem will be the best control.

[Hopezibah]

We keep all internet enabled devices downstairs in full view of everyone to help limit any inappropriate use.

The children have learnt about not clicking through to anything that looks dodgy or inappropriate. We have tried various internet security packages but i end up annoyed at them when they block me from perfectly ok sites for no obvious reason so often we remove the internet security and rely on common sense.

The kids know never to give out any personal details and there are only games that we have allowed them to play which we consider safe like moshi monsters where there is strict control.

Other than once nearly clicking on an inappropriate you tube video - thankfully they have always been careful on the internet so far.

[CMOTDibbler]

DS is 7, and our tablet allows different profiiles so his doesn't have internet access.

His only access is on the family PC, and he has to ask to change websites from the one an adult has approved. If he wants to watch things on Youtube, an adult must be watching.

We've talked lots about people putting yuck things on the internet, about people lying, and he is very suspicious about things like Moshi where 'they just want you to spend money'

[MoogDroog]

My 2 DCs are just 5 and 2, so I've not done too much about internet security as yet. I've made sure that in-app purchases aren't possible and try to keep a keen eye on what they're doing - although I do tend to use the ipad as a babysitter for when I need to actually do something. I'm guessing it might soon be time to rethink my approach.

[MadMonkeys]

This hasn't really cropped up yet as my DCs are too young. I think a problem is going to be mobile devices. We will avoid these as long as possible and have the only internet access the DCs have on our lounge PC. Once they are old enough to have mobile devices with internet access we will have to look at what is available, but technology moves on so fast these days there is little point making plans for 10 years time as things may look a lot different by then in terms of how the internet is accessed and what protection is available . DH is in IT so he is pretty savvy on this sort of thing.

[Wjjkl]

My son is too young at the moment, but the Internet is a part of today's children's lives in a way that it wasn't in our childhoods. It's therefore the responsibility of parents to get knowledgeable enough to know how to look after their children online.

I think the more info & help available for parents, the better & the Internet providers (and mobile phone operators for that matter) should be doing their utmost to help parents understand how to keep their children safe. I will certainly appreciate any help when the time comes.

[ShadowKittee]

The problem with online security systems/filters is that they can block sites that are harmless, so long as there is proper supervision when younger children use them. Those blocks can also catch out older people who aren't that familiar with the Internet - my MIL is a new TalkTalk customer and called me over last night because she couldn't get onto Youtube. A quick check revealed that HomeSafe was on, so I switched it off for her. As she is in her sixties, I think she'll be safe on there .

Supervision and communication are key, I think, in online safety. By keeping an eye on younger children, and discussing the pros and cons and dangers of the Internet with older children, a lot of problems can be avoided.

The one thing I worry about is peer pressure. A teenager who isn't on social media websites is out of the social loop, but it leaves them open to dangerous trends as well as potential bullying. And they're mortified at any parental presence on their profiles, let alone at their parents snooping around their private messages. It's a fine line to tread, being a parent of a teenager. I think that the best way to go about it is to encourage them to come talk to you about any concerns, and that they know they'll be listened to.

[unadulterateddad]

Use of computer and tablet is limited to watching youtube videos of sciencey stuff or videos of computer games. DS is never allowed to watch or use online sites without a parent watching.
No online activity without adults present.
Tablet has a profile specifically limited to certain apps and with no access to buying google play store stuff. I can add or remove apps as necessary. We've talked about in app purchases and he knows that they can be dangerous and not good value !! DS is 7

[thegrowlygus]

We have 6 & 9 year old sons. The 9 year old uses he Internet with supervision (I am in the same room although not consistently over his shoulder). He understands that if he sees anything not nice, to close the computer and tell an adult. (Same rules as school). We have blocks on Internet too (we are with talk talk and use their safeguards which seem to work very well). Both boys use iPad and iPhone but both of these are password protected and in app purchases blocked.
So far no mishaps!
Main difficulty can be their friends suggesting sites/apps that I don't think are suitable for their age - but generally I can find similar alternatives that are ok.

[Cherryjellybean]

I am 13 according to the Internet age calculator :)

2 year old dd can't access the Internet without us as our phones etc are passworded. She plays on a few apps on our phones but its not possible for her to do in app purchases because of the settings we have done.
We have to watch her while she watches program's on you tube as once we caught her watching something random because she had been clicking on things randomly. We watch her a lot better now. :)
We will have to put in more security when shes a bit older.

[BobaFetaCheese]

We have a 2year old (and a not very tech savvy 6 month old), obviously he's never alone with tech as he only has access to it on mobile phones.

I have an android phone and use a child lock app (Kids Place if anyone is interested) to block his access to anything other than youtube.

I think parents should take it upon themselves to learn everything about tech to ensure they stay one step ahead of the ever-learning sponges of information that are their children.
It's scary how many threads appear on mumsnet where children have used inapp purchases to spend £100+!

I've just done that talktalk Internet Age Calculator (smarter than a 10 year old, woohoo!).
I'm 26 and was a child back when we had microsoft chatrooms on hulking great desktop PCs, it was easy enough to arrange a meetup then so I can only imagine when children get their own phones & use social dating/meet up apps how little the parents would know.

[popperdoodles]

We have always taken the approach of keeping internet use in family spaces so we can see what they are accessing. Now they are older we do trust them to take the laptop into their rooms. The internet is just the same as real life, you have to trust them to make good choices based on what you have taught them.

[KnitActually]

we've started talking about internet safety with our 5 year old. he understands that we don't let him scroll through Google images or you tube in case there is something too old for him that might be upsetting or confusing.

[Pinter]

No laptops or smartphones in bedrooms.
Internet use in shared family rooms only.
Parental controls on home computers.
Talk about images/ selfies etc age appropriately.
Don't say anything online you wouldn't say face to face.

[kslatts]

Both my daughters (ages 14 and 12) have ipads and are allowed to go online in their own rooms. We don't restrict what websites they visit, etc. but have long discussions about staying safe online.

[HootyMcOwlface]

My DH is the tech savvy one who sets up the security controls. I should learn really, before my DS gets too much older.
We've got a tablet and a computer. I've heard the horror stories about in app purchases so we've got those blocked, and I plan to supervise any internet time for DS.
I guess the problems come when they get older and have their own phone, and you have to teach them about appropriate use.

[goldenretriever]

Mine are only 3 and 4, but they can play with the laptop if we are in the room - this will change obviously. At the moment they like to watch clips and songs on Youtube.

[sealight123]

My daughter is only 2 and a half, so she is still supervised to an inch of her life when using our gadgets and looking on youtube (she is currently loving Mandarin Elmo :S) but we do have all of our devices child locked on each device, password protected (so she can'y but any little extras) and they all have good anti-virus software. As she gets older we'll teach her about IT security, as I am an IT support advisor.

[glammanana]

My DD and I make sure we are always in the room when my DGCs are using either laptop or tablet and are always glancing at what they are viewing the devices have very good anti-virus installed and are used mainly for homework & occasional games which we monitor closely,they also are into sports so are not using the internet for anything else they are smart kids and know the implications as they have been advised well on the subject at school & by us.

[ummlilia]

dd9 has an android tablet.I set it up using an email address which is an alias,part of my own google account so I have access to and control of everything. I set safe search on youtube and parental controls on tv apps and where possible I vet things she hasn't used before. The problem I am having now is peer pressure..she is begging to go on Skype with her classmates. I banned this after hearing one 'friend' encouraging her to delete their IMs, and asking her to go off into another room so I couldn't hear the conversation (I have ongoing issues with this friend but that's another story).
We have had conversations about security..a useful thing we watched ws a CBBC short film..called Caught In the Web www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/13908828

[MrsLoada]

Kids are 11 and 12 we've had long discussions about internet safety and talked about what we expect from them, they know we can check their search online history so can check what they have been doing. And don't say anything on line that you wouldn't say face to face ( or anything that you won't say in front of grandma ) we don't block any websites but we do block internet access on their devices from 9 pm till 8 am as they don't need it at night and don't want them on iPads/ laptops when they should be asleep

[Blu]

We are horribly safety-illiterate in this respect.
At the moment I rely on regular spot checks on DS's internet history.
The TALKTALK package sounds good, and we are TALKTALK customers. Just one thing: if it covers absolutely everything coming in, would it block some of the stuff DP needs to access for work? he is in a branch of media (no, not porn! In any form) and reads lots of bids with images of naked bodies, descriptions and pics of sexually related material or stuff that might be detected as such by a screening package.

But of course that is on DP's laptop, not any device DS has access to.

[Willemdefoeismine]

DH uses a 'log-me-in' system to randomly check on what DS (13) is doing! I take a less 'techy' approach by looking at the 'search history'!