Internet parental guide for child safety

Goal

The internet is there to get information from around the world to your pc/tablet/phone. There is information you wouldn't want your child to see, but where do you draw the line. To quote Common Sense Media 'We believe in sanity, not censorship'.

The attitude is to raise a generation of kids that would treat the online community the same way they would the one in the real world. And hopefully reduce the amount of trolls, white noise and toxic behavior on the Internet.

Dangers

The most well known concerns on the internet are pornography, violent content and theft. Luckily pornography/violence can be censored and theft can be avoided by not giving away sensitive information

However there are some things that you can't avoid. The other dangers of the web are connected to the online communities and how they act towards each other. When going on websites like Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Instagram etc. we are exposed to all kinds of people all over the world. Unfortunately some of these people aren't the kind you would want to expose your child to. But you also don't want to stop your child from using these sites all together.

Virtual parenting

The most effective censoring tool we can recommend that works 100% of the time with 100% user satisfaction is you, the parent. We're not saying you have to be there with your child all the time, but at least regularly spend time with them on the web. This is raising your web child, it's like raising a child normally, except it is centered towards the virtual morals and standers rather than real life ones (they are separate).

Virtual parenting tools

For when your not there, there are tools available for blocking inappropriate content like K9 or WebCensor, but as a bare minimum we suggest Cloudflare 1.1.1.1 for families, Common Sense Media, Google safe search, Lucidview Clean Internet for Children, and OpenDNS.

Common Sense Media

Common Sense is the leading independent nonprofit organization dedicated to helping kids thrive in a world of media and technology.

These are Common Sense Media's 10 believes

Believe in media sanity, not censorship.
Believe that media has truly become "the other parent" in our kids' lives, powerfully affecting their social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development.
Believe in teaching our kids to be savvy, respectful and responsible media users. We can’t cover their eyes but we can teach them to see.
Believe parents should have a choice and a voice about the media our kids consume and create. Every family is different but we all need to make informed choices.
Believe that the price for free and open media is a bit of work for families. Parents need to know about the media their kids use and need to teach responsible behavior as well as manage overall media use.
Believe that through informed decision making, we can improve the media landscape one decision at a time.
Believe appropriate regulations about right time, right place, and right manner exist. They need to be upheld by our elected and appointed leaders.
Believe in age-appropriate media and that the media industry needs to act responsibly as it creates and markets content for each audience.
Believe ratings systems should be independent and transparent for all media.
Believe in diversity of programming and media ownership.

Cloudflare 1.1.1.1 for Families

1.1.1.1 for Families is the easiest way to add a layer of protection to your home network and protect it from malware and adult content. 1.1.1.1 for Families leverages Cloudflare's global network to ensure that it is fast and secure around the world. And includes the same strong privacy guarantees that we committed to when we launched 1.1.1.1 two years ago.

Use the following DNS servers to block malware and adult content:

1.1.1.3
1.0.0.3
2606:4700:4700::1113
2606:4700:4700::1003

Ready to set it up? You’ll find an easy guide for every device in the setup instructions page.

Google Safe Search

You can filter explicit search results on Google, like pornography, using the SafeSearch setting. SafeSearch isn't 100% accurate, but it helps you avoid most adult content.

To activate Google safe search:

Go to search settings
Under "SafeSearch filters," check or uncheck the box next to "Turn on SafeSearch."
At the bottom of the page, select Save.

Lucidview Clean Internet for Children

At LucidView Clean Internet for Children is a major concern. As a result, our Content Filtering solution is extremely effective at blocking inappropriate content and protecting your children.

Find out more.

Mikrotik setup guide.