It is so hard for parents when they hear that a child has been abducted, or worse, by someone they met online. Keeping your children safe online is something that parents must be concerned about. Here are some tips to help you accomplish that.

1. Keep the lines of communication open. Talk to your children about the perceived and unperceived dangers of being online. Make sure they understand that not everyone plays by the rules. Even if a chat room is set up for children only, that doesn’t keep adults from entering the room and posing like kids to see who their next victim will be.

2. Together as a family, set computer usage rules in place. Determine how long your children can be online, where they can go, and who they can talk to. If they deviate from these rules, ban them from using it for a while. That might be enough to get their attention and keep them from straying from them in the future.

3. Check the browser history on the computer and see which websites they have been visiting. A child-friendly browser can actually block sites that you deem to be inappropriate. Use those parental controls to help keep your children safe online.

4. Keep the computer in a common area. If you can’t physically sit next to your child while they’re on the computer, the easiest way to monitor what your child does and who you child talks to online is to set the computer they use in an area where you can see it.

5. Make sure you have access to any email account they have. This way you can check their email for anything inappropriate. Don’t be afraid to monitor email or instant messages they may receive, doing so may just save your child’s life.

6. If your child has access to an instant message system, check out their buddy list. Know who they are talking to and block anyone that doesn’t meet your standards.

7. Keep children out of chat rooms and social networking websites. These are wildly popular, but they can also be dangerous places for your child to visit.

8. Make sure they understand they are not allowed to give ANY personal information out online. They specifically should not tell anyone their real name, age, birthday, address, or telephone number.

Besides the possible dangers of pedophiles or cyber-bullies tracking down your children, there are other dangers online. Pop-up advertising isn’t always rated PG. In fact, quite a bit of it can be considered risqué. Add to that the possibility of accidentally landing on a pornographic website, and your child may be scarred for life.

You, as parents, need to be vigilant in keeping your children safe online. Take every precaution you think is necessary to ensure their safety. You have the right, and authority, to check up on their online activities. They may not like it, but at least you’ll know they’re safe.

There’s a great sense of camaraderie when you enter an online chat room. You can be yourself without fear of recrimination. No one knows who you are, so you’re “safe”. Well, that’s not entirely true. The dangers of online chats are all too often played out on the evening news. Here are some ways to help those you love or yourself from being a statistic.

* Don’t give out personal information in online chat rooms, forums, or over instant messengers unless you personally know the people you’re chatting with. This rule goes for your children and yourself.

* Teach your children to be very selective about who they trust online. This means, if they meet someone new online, don’t assume they are who they say they are. There are quite often people that pretend to be something they’re not in order to lure people, unfortunately mainly young children or teenagers, into a false sense of security.

* Tell your children and loved ones to avoid meeting people in person that they’ve met online, particularly if that person is pushing the meeting. Make sure they tell you about anyone who asks to meet them in person. If they feel they must meet this person, offer to go with them as long as they meet in a public place and in broad daylight. Then, be very careful of the contact they have with your child afterwards.

* Stay with your child if they are chatting online so you can help them stay in charge of what’s being said. Don’t allow them to give out personal information such as their name, address, telephone number, private email addresses, or pictures. Offering up personal information just makes anyone vulnerable, and you don’t want that.

* Check your profile to be sure you, or they, haven’t already divulged too much personal information.

* If you or your child is online and the conversation changes and makes you uncomfortable, log out. Go as far as deleting that username and create a new one. Make a note of the offending party and stay out of conversations with them. Don’t be afraid to block a username, either. It is your right not to have to deal with offensive or bullying people.

* If a conversation really turns offensive, save a copy of the chat just in case the person decides to stalk you or your child and you need to report them.

Online chats don’t always lead to sexual predators. Sometimes they entice children, teens, and even adults to do things they would never consider at any other time – stealing, purchasing illegal drugs, self-mutilation – these are all things that can be found online.

While the internet can be a useful tool, offering a chance to meet new people, learn new things, and do research for educational purposes, it’s not always safe. Teach your child the dangers of online chats, making sure you know them as well. Then make sure everyone in the family follows the rules that have been set in place that will help them avoid the dangers of online chats.