Internet Safety.com's

Family Internet Safety Gameplan

The following game plan establishes the online ground rules. The parents/guardians will display this game plan and update it periodically as our children grow older. (Source: InternetSafety.com)

1. We will never give out personal information such as our last name, address or phone number. We should also not give out the name of our school, our city, our siblings, our sports team or our parent’s workplace.

2. We all agree to not give our passwords to anyone outside of our family. We have all agreed upon user names to use while we are on the Internet. I will not change the settings for my computer or my password without my parent’s permission.

3. We all agree to limit our online time so that it doesn’t interfere with other activities. We agree to follow the time limits that our family sets and not let the Internet take time away from homework, sports, face- to-face interactions or family time.

4. I will never meet an online friend in person. Just as I stay away from strangers on the street, I will be careful about strangers on the Internet. If anyone ever asks to meet with me offline, I will notify my parents immediately.

5. I will tell my mom or dad right away if I come across something that makes me feel uncomfortable. If anyone uses bad language or mentions things that make me uncomfortable, I will immediately log off and tell my parents.

6. I will not remain on or click on a page that says, “For Over 18 Years Only.” If this happens, I will log off and I will let my parents know. I understand that I’m only a click away from bad sites and that these pages are definitely not for kids.

7. I will only download pictures and files with my parent’s permission. Some of these files may contain inappropriate pictures or dangerous viruses that could mess up our computer.

8. I will not send pictures of my family or myself to anyone online. The only way that I am allowed to do this is if my parents say it is all right.

9. I will be safe everywhere. I will follow the same Internet safety rules at my friends’ houses, at school and at the library that I do while I’m at home.

10. I understand that nothing is private on the Internet. I agree that my mom or dad can read my mail or check the sites that I have been visiting — not because they don’t trust me but because they just want to make sure that I am safe.

We agree to the above InternetSafety.com Gameplan:

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Child's Signature

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Parent’s Signature

Here are a few steps you can take to manage your digital footprint :

1. Respect technology and use it wisely.

2. Accept your digital responsibilities as technology continues to advance.

3. Keep your passwords safe and do not allow your browser to save your password, especially if you share the computer with others.

4. Learn how to change the browser settings for the browsers on your computer, smartphone, or mobile device.

5. Check your browser settings regularly to make sure they haven’t reset due to cookie deletion or some other reason.

6. Erase your search history from your browser before you allow someone else to get on the computer, mobile device or smartphone. Your history provides an outline of the sites you have visited and may reveal information that may negatively impact your reputation or make sensitive and expose private information.

7. Install a privacy add-on to your browser or use the private browsing feature located in your browser settings.