parents

Set some basic ground rules such as what times your children can go online and for how long. You may prefer
that they only go online when you are at home yourself.Be honest with your kids and explain that although you
trust them some sites are completely off limits. Tell your child to let you know when they are online. Encourage
them to talk about the sites they have visited and be sure to listen and take an interest. A child that feels
comfortable discussing their online activities will be more likely to tell you when they have encountered
something that bothers them. If a child informs you about something "strange" do listen to them. Get as much
information as you can about the website and who the child has been in contact with. If necessary login yourself
using the child's login details and check things out for yourself.

Chatrooms are becoming ever more popular with young users. They can provide instant contact with other
users of similar interests such as music, video games, football, etc, or be a place for general chat. However, the
anonymity of users and the development of an online friendship with someone who is "just like me" means that
chatrooms can pose their own serious risks to a child's safety (or anyone elses come to that). But that is not to
say that chatrooms have to be totally avoided they can still be enjoyed as long as users, young or old, keep
some simple security measures in mind. Some superb advice on "How to keep safe while chatting online" is
available at the website, www.chatdanger.com

along with some real case examples of why online security is important.

Only disclose your private email address to anyone you don't already know when it is necessary. Consider
having a seperate address specifically for signing up to internet services, etc, so that your private inbox doesn't
get compromised or bombarded with newsletters. Never open unexpected email attachments even if they are
from a source known to you as they can contain a virus that has infiltrated someone's email address book and
mailed itself to you. Half of all email can be considered spam - unsolicited marketing offers. It is a nuisance but
can safely be deleted. Most service providers now have spam filters installed on their servers that can eliminate
spam from known sources or message patterns. However spammers are adept at changing their account or even
hijacking innocent accounts to get round the filters. If spam is persistant or offering offensive material you may
wish to report it via www.spamcop.net .

Firewalls work in your system's background and offer protection from unauthorised attempts to access your
computer by monitoring traffic to and from your PC and blocking those considered high risk. If you don't already
have a firewall installed you may wish to consider the free - yes free - version of the award winning ZoneAlarm.

Viruses are malicious programs that come in ever changing form. Generally they can use your system to email
themselves to contacts in your address book then trash your PC. Similar to a virus is the trojan horse. This is a
program that having gained access to your system hides there quietly passing out information from your hard
drive. Various anti-virus software is available but it is essential that which brand you choose will automatically
update itself, preferably everyday. Among the programes you may wish to consider are those from Norton,
MacAfee and the free version of Grisoft's excellent AVG.

Phishing is the term given to attempts by criminals to mislead you into giving away vital personal information -
usually bank account details and passwords. Phishing usually takes the form of an emailed request from a bank or
credit card company for you to confirm your account details. When you attempt to do so you will be taken to a
bogus web page that will record the details you enter giving the criminals all the information needed to clear your
account. The important point to remember is that banks,etc are acutely aware of this problem and never send such
requests. For online banking security advice and to report banking scams please visit www.banksafeonline.org.uk

Phishing emails can be reported at www.antiphishing.org