Robert Siciliano
Online Security and Safety Evangelist to McAfee Robert is an identity theft expert who is committed to ...
A new study called “The Digital Divide: How the Online Behavior of Teens is Getting Past Parents” (conducted by Tru Research and commissioned by McAfee) shows an alarming 70% of teens have hidden their online behavior from their parents, up from 45% in 2010. And yet half of parents live under the assumption that their teen tells them everything he/she does online.
It’s perfectly normal for teens to be less than forthcoming during these years when their hormones are raging and teen angst boggles their brain and body. However the Internet has drastically changed our culture and teens today have access to an incredible amount of information that they didn’t have, just a decade ago.
This instant access to information and digital devices is having an impact on our teens that many of us as parents don’t realize. Some of the revealing consequences are:
And what about the parents? The study showed:
Parents, you must stay in-the-know. Since your teens have grown up in an online world, they may be more online savvy than their parents, but you can’t give up. You must challenge yourselves to become familiar with the complexities of the teen online universe and stay educated on the various devices your teens are using to go online.
As a parent of two young girls, I proactively participate in their online activities and talk to them about the “rules of the road” for the Internet. I’m hoping that this report opens other parent’s eyes so they’ll become more involved in educating their teens with advice and tools.
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Robert Siciliano is an Online Security Evangelist to McAfee. Watch him discussing information he found on used electronic devices YouTube. (Disclosures)
Tags: cyberbullying, family protection, Internet filtering, Internet monitoring, kids online behavior, McAfee Safe Eyes, McAfee Safe Eyes Mobile, parental controls, protecting teens, teens and porn, teens online
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