This post was written by 10-year-old student Lila H., who attended our recent Blankets and Bear Hugs Community Day. We love that she learned about online safety and was inspired to use part of our presentation in her debate speech!

Thanks to Lila and her sister for attending our Blankets and Bear Hugs Community Day!

Did you know kids aren’t safe in their own bedrooms anymore? That’s because we have access to the internet where online child predators could be searching for us. But how can child predators find us and how can we stay safe online?

There are a variety of ways child predators track kids online. Common Sense Media shows that they will most likely try to find children through chat rooms, social media, and multiplayer games (Minecraft, Roblox, etc.). That’s where kids might give personal information. Child Rescue Coalition says using certain hashtags including, #kidsbikini or #pottytraining, is another way kids can be found online.

In fact, Child Rescue Coalition says, the average parent posts about 1,500 pictures of their child before the age of five. Also, some kids post pictures of themselves with their school logo or sign on their shirt or in the background, that leads child predators to the school we attend. That’s why kids and adults need to be careful. We need to protect ourselves from online child predators. Here are a few things Parenting.com says to do.

How to Protect Kids from Online Predators

1. Never give out personal information to ANYONE
2. Don’t open your email to any email address you don’t know
3. Don’t respond to hurtful or disturbing messages you receive.
4. DO NOT EVER get together with anyone you meet online!!!

A few other things we need to know to stay safe online is to keep social media accounts private so they are not exposed to what child predators can do. Also, avoid wearing school clothes or having the school logo in the backdrop.

We should also use our devices around an adult or in a common area, so if someone we don’t know contacts us a parent could help. Lastly, never talk to strangers in person or online.

It’s really frightening what online child predators can do. It’s amazing too what we can do to help prevent them. So parents and children should start working harder to stay safe on the internet, so we can feel as safe as a bug in a rug.

For more information on Child Rescue Coalition and how to keep kids safe online, visit www.childrescuecoalition.org. And read more posts like this on our education page!

Don’t forget you can like us on Facebook and Instagram for more helpful online safety tips!