The problem of computer gaming addiction in children

It turns out that the game addiction, which we have heard so much about, is still "florets" compared to Internet threats. The problem of computer game dependence in children is our topic of the article.

Instruction for parents

According to research conducted in Ukraine, 27% of children aged 6 to 17 confirmed that they were contacted by strangers on the Internet. But the most unpleasant thing is that a third of them willingly went to contact (they sent a photo, information about the family). It is alarming that only 57% of our parents are interested in what sites their children visit. The data of foreign researchers are even more frightening: 9 out of 10 children between the ages of 8 and 16 who are actively using the Internet have encountered online pornography. And about 50% of them at least once were sexually harassed. Unfortunately, on the expanses of the Internet the child not only communicates with peers or finds useful information. Here it can also be insulted or intimidated. And there was a kind of fraud, like phishing, aimed at stealing personal data (for example, information about a bank account, credit card number or passwords). And the child for criminals is the main object.

In connection with the increased risks, you will benefit from 5 rules for parents

1. Place the computer in the common room - thus, discussion of the Internet will become a daily habit, and the child will not be alone with the computer if he has problems.

2. Use an alarm clock to limit the length of the child's stay on the Internet - this is important for the prevention of computer addiction.

3. Use technical methods to protect your computer: parental control in the operating system, antivirus and spam filter.

4. Create "Family Internet Rules" that will promote online safety for children.

5. Be sure to discuss with children all the questions that arise in their use of the Network, be interested in friends from the Internet. Learn to be critical about information on the Internet and not share personal data online.

Filtering ...

Of course, for the implementation of parental control it is important to apply and various software. Install any of the programs depending on the operating system of your computer - this will help to filter out harmful content; find out which sites your child is visiting; set the time frame for using the computer (or the Internet); block unwanted actions of a small user on the Web. The most popular parental control programs are:

■ "Additional security" in Windows 7 - will ensure the security of personal data from all possible threats;

■ "Family Safety" in Windows Live - will help to keep track of the contacts and interests of your child, even from another computer;

■ "Parental Control" in Windows Vista - with it you can determine the time when the child can log into the system, and also use the filter to set a ban or to separate games, nodes, programs.

■ "Parental Control" in Kaspersky Cristal - in addition to the anti-virus program, it allows you to monitor the sites on which the child walks, and limit visits to "unwanted". In addition, the program will help you to keep personal information (family photos, passwords, files) from intrusion and theft.

Or maybe just take over and ban the computer at all? But the forbidden fruit, as you know, is sweet - and believe me, your child will certainly find a way to visit the Web (from a friend or from an Internet cafe). In addition, as a child grows up, more and more educational information is needed, which is now also being drawn from the Internet. Therefore, the only way out is to form the children's correct attitude to the computer's capabilities, to inform them of the full extent of the danger and to persuade them to follow these simple rules that will help make children's communication on the Internet safer.

Children's rules

Never give information about yourself that can indicate that you are a child. Instead of a picture, use a drawn avatar. The mood is access to your photos only for the closest people. Do not click on suspicious links. Maintain friendship only with those you know. If during a conversation in a chat or online correspondence, a stranger threatens you, asks unpleasant questions or persuades you for a meeting in real life, then the plan of action is this: do not answer anything and immediately inform your parents about it!