How to prevent risks and protect children from online sexual abuse – webinars for parents
When is the right time to discuss online risks with my child? Is it not too early to talk to him about it at age 7? Is it not too late at age 16? These are the type of questions that La Strada specialists receive from parents concerned about their children’s behavior on the Internet.
It is never too early to talk to children about their safety. The fact that the child does not have a social media profile does not mean that he/she can’t be approached by an unknown person through a gaming platform for example. For this reason, online safety specialists recommend that the first discussion about communication and socialization rules takes place before giving the child access to a tablet, phone or laptop.
As children grow older, the technologies they use and the interaction possibilities on social networks become more and more complex, and with them – the risks of abuse. Talking to an adolescent about their social interactions, interests and friends can be really tricky for a parent. With parents of teenagers in mind, we have prepared 4 webinars for the month of February, where we will learn how to construct a friendly and pleasant dialogue with the adolescent, so that we can prevent the risks and protect them from online sexual abuse.
During the webinars, we will present useful information resources for parents, elaborated by the Council of Europe. La Strada specialists will give recommendations for preventing online abuse and will offer the parents methods of correct intervention, when they first notice worrying signs in the behavior of the child. The webinars will be live-streamed on the SigurOnline.md Youtube channel on the 11th, 18th, 22nd, and 25th of February at 19:00.
Parents of adolescents will be able to ask questions and receive answers from online safety specialists live. Taking part in the webinars is free of charge.
This year, the “Safer Internet Day” campaign is implemented by International Centre La Strada Moldova with the financial support of the United States Embassy in Chisinau, within the Project of the Council of Europe “Combating violence against children in the Republic of Moldova” in partnership with the Ministry of Education, Culture and Research.
As the National SID Committee, La Strada Moldova implements the international SID initiative campaign in the Republic of Moldova with the slogan “Together for a better internet.” For 17 years, the goal of this campaign has been the same: to mobilize citizens, the civil society, companies, authorities and the general public to ensure a better internet for young internet users. Today, this initiative is marked in over 140 countries in the world. On social media, messages from the supporters of this campaign can be found under the hashtags #SaferInternetDay, #SID2021, #SigurOnline.
