• Use the internet with your kids.  Learn about their favorite websites, educate yourself while spending time with your kids & don't let your child's superior knowledge of technology intimidate you.
• Establish clear ground rules about internet usage.
• Teach kids to never give personal information to people they meet online, especially in chat rooms and on bulletin boards.  This information includes:  name, pictures, school name, address, phone number, friends' names, passwords or any other piece of information that could identify their location to a stranger.  Teach your kids to be leery of anyone who wants to know too much!
• Instruct kids to never plan a face-to-face meeting with any online acquaintance, even in a public place such as a mall.
• Instruct kids to never respond to messages or bulletin board postings that are sexually suggestive, obscene or harassing.
• Encourage kids to tell you if a stranger approaches them online or says something that makes them feel uncomfortable.
• Use hard-to-guess passwords and keep them private.  Tell your family that combinations of letters, numbers and symbols are harder to "crack" than just words.
• Tell your kids not to respond at all to offensive or dangerous email, chat requests or other communications and to leave if they see a website that makes them uncomfortable.  Make sure your kids know they can show you anything that makes them uncomfortable.  Assure them you will not be angry with or blame them; keep lines of communication open.
• If you become worried that your kids or their friends are in danger, don't hesitate to call the authorities.
• Disconnect from the internet when not in use. 
• Get to know and use "Parental Controls" available through your internet service provider or available for purchase. 

*Source:  Caught in the Web Resource Guide c. 2006.

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