Social media websites are one of the most explored platforms on the Internet. With more and more accounts being created every day, there is a tremendous amount of content that users are consuming. However, it is undeniable that social media is not all sunshine and rainbows. There is a dark side to the Internet, and social media is a massive part of it. So this poses the question of how safe social media is for users, especially younger ones.

Despite being restricted to younger children, many users below the age of 13 have access to social media websites. When it comes to platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook, there is an age limit to using the websites. However, due to the increasing popularity of social media among younger kids, most children have social media accounts despite being younger than the required age. ExpressVPN reveals that some 4-year-olds spend an average of 21 minutes on social media daily. With such use of social media from a young age, the platforms may be quite dangerous for younger children.

Why Is Social Media Dangerous?

Social media is quite helpful when interacting with friends or finding creative content. Platforms like Youtube are also heavily used for educational purposes. However, there are opposing sides to social media that younger users are unaware of. This might not seem like a major issue, but harmful incidents can impact young minds. With the increase in anonymity and privacy features, it has become easier for criminals to disguise themselves on social media. The anonymity of social media has also provided free reign to internet trolls.

Harmful Impacts Of Social Media On Children

Multiple threats on social media could affect anybody. However, social media is more dangerous for younger generations. Based on a study, most kids under 13 have no clue about the real problems they could face on social media. Parents of young children also stated that they are worried about incidents like grooming, bullying, and cyberstalking.

Grooming activities online are at an all-time high. The most basic threat on social media is Internet trolls and scammers. Scammers and internet trolls can not only steal personal information but can also psychologically affect young children.

Additionally, getting unsupervised access to the internet can result in exposure to inappropriate content. There is a lot of hateful content on social media that could heavily impact the ideologies of a young mind. Moreover, exposure to explicit content can be uncomfortable for younger generations to watch. With the ever-increasing pile of threats on social media, steps must be taken to protect children from the dangers of social media.

Social Media Safety Tips For Parents

The best way to protect your children against social media threats is to set boundaries within the house. Have a proper conversation with your children about the negative aspects of social media. Make sure your kids understand social media’s dangers to some extent. If your child is very young, try to make them understand why it is not suitable for them to be on social media. 

Teach your children about the primary safety measure that they must follow. Rather than removing social media from children’s lives, try to have open communication with your children. This will gradually build trust, and your kids can approach you in a traumatizing situation.

There are multiple ways for parents to protect their children online. Ensure your child’s usernames are not obvious giveaways to their age or name and help your children create strong passwords. Usually, weak passwords are easily decodable and can risk your child’s privacy. Make sure to tell your children about basic things like sharing personal information and avoiding strangers. 

With the increasing number of online predators, it is best to know who your child is talking to on social media. Keep in mind that you must give space to your children. If your kid feels pressured to share things with you, then there are chances that they might completely stop. Keep a tab on your child’s browsing activities, but do not go around snooping on their phones, as this can lead to mistrust between you and your child.

Social media is not completely bad, and there are positive aspects to using social media.  However, learning about the threats on social media is more important for young users. This can protect them from any potential predators and bullying incidents as well. 

Conclusion

It is important in today’s time and age to protect children against the dangers of social media. If we do not educate children about the negative aspects of social media, they are more prone to fall into dangerous situations. Parents should try to communicate with their children about social media. They can also try to set some boundaries for using social media so that parents know what their kids are doing on the internet. The best way to protect children from social media threats is by educating them regarding such issues.

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