Parents explain how they keep kids safe from the dangers of social media

LOWNDES CO, Miss. (WCBI)-  When kids are on social media it is important for parents to keep a watch on their activity.

“The world is a bad place and the internet can be an opportunity for someone to gain access to your child and it’s something to be very cautious about,” said Hawkins.

Social Media is *everywhere* and it’s almost impossible for anyone to dodge it.

According to Mayo Clinic.org, 97% of teens have access to at least one social media platform

And whether it be in a classroom or even in the comfort of your own home, children can be targets of predators through those platforms. That’s why parents need to know where their children are going, and who else might be there.

Parents like Kellum Hawk say it is important for them to make sure their children are safe from people on social media.

“For the ones who are on Social media there are apps out there to monitor and we use those and we have a rule that devices come to our room at night but I think as a parent our most important job is to protect our kids from, all of the dangers and they come from a multitude of places nowadays,” said Hawk.

And Hawk says she makes sure to educate her kids on what they should and should *not* be doing when online.

“Education is key. Setting expectations and educating. I have conversations right now about what you share and what you don’t share and that goes across the board and you can. You can be approached in the store you can be approached in public and via social media and people can disguise themselves and be someone they’re not and so we have a lot of conversations and that’s part of that education about what to share and what not to share,” said Hawk.

And Sheriff Eddie Hawkins says predators on the internet don’t just stop. They continue searching for their next victim.

“It’s not with just one child they are trolling the internet looking for multiple children at a time to communicate with and that’s how they give themselves gratification by doing that,” said Hawkins.

And Sheriff Hawkins says parents need to be aware that some predators can be the ones they are closest to.

“We see a lot of people of trust that parents know and trust their kids with and those are the ones that can abuse child because they have access to the children,” said Hawkins.
M spy and Net Nanny are just two apps that parents can use to help keep an eye on their kid’s activities.