e Safety and Omegle

LCC Stay Safe Partnership have issued the following advice to parents about Omegle. We have become aware that a few of our Y6 pupils may be using this site.

Omegle offers a free video chat service which will connect you to a random stranger who can interact with you through text, chat and webcam. There is no safe way to use this website and it is highly likely that users will encounter adult sexual content and risk encountering predatory behaviour. The attached factsheet has been created to educate parents on what Omegle is and how to protect children and young people from its use through encouraging the use of internet parental controls in the home.

Please can all parents look at their parental controls and particularly those of you with older children have a talk with your children about this. This website is for 18+ and is completely unsafe for all children under this age.

The following article has been recommended by an e Safety adviser (who has carried out e Safety training in school) as a very interesting article for parents from the website, Common Sense Media: Why the Best Parental Control is You.

The Lincolnshire Safeguarding Children's Board have produced the following e safety advice:

There are four simple tips that we should share with children, no matter what their age, in order to help them keep themselves safe on the internet:

1. Remember that people we meet on the internet are strangers and they may not always be who they say they are. Just as many children who use Facebook lie about themselves (you should be 13 to have an account), other users can also lie about who they are. It’s important that children and young people only add people they know in the real world as friends.
2. Never share personal information online. Websites like Facebook allow users to tell the whole world every intimate detail and there may be occasions when users of other website may ask for children and young people to share personal information such as phone numbers, emails, locations and pictures. It’s important to remember that this information should only be given to people that they have met in the real world and that they trust – they’d never consider telling a stranger in the street.
3. Always be nice to others online just like they would in the real world. Every website and service they use will have rules against bullying online and reporting tools are available if someone is being horrible to them. Equally, if they choose to be nasty to others, they can be reported themselves which may result in a loss of service for a period of time.
4. If they ever feel scared, worried or unsafe when using the internet, it’s important that they talk to an adult they trust. This can be parents, their teacher or another member of their family such as an auntie, uncle, even grandparents. CEOP also offer a reporting tool called Click CEOP which children and young people can use.

Managing Abuse Online

It’s important that we try to build resilience in children and young people, to help them better manage online abuse mentally and emotionally. With that in mind, why not encourage them to adopt the following strategy when faced with abusive behaviour online:

• Ignore the individual. By far the hardest thing we will ever ask anyone to do, but also one of the most important. While still acknowledging the pain that these messages can cause, by resisting the urge to retaliate you can sometimes stop hurtful comments escalating into a full blown public argument. The individual has sent a message to get a reaction, encourage them not to give them one
• Save a copy. Evidence can sometimes be needed to show others what has been said online but children and young people don’t want to have to see the message or the individuals name every time they open their messages. Encourage them not to delete the message but if they need to, get them to screenshot it on their phone
• Block and Report the person. Blocking stops them from contacting you again, while reporting will inform the site who can then deal with the individuals behaviour, possibly sanctioning them if they have breached the rules on the site. Blocking is an essential digital skill and should be seen as a first line of defence in managing abusive individuals or peers online
• Talk. Telling someone what has happened could make them feel better, or allow someone else to help resolve any issues - especially if the abusive individual is known to them in the real world. Services such as Childline and Kooth can offer support to children and young people, but telling a trusted adult is still something we should actively encourage.

Lincolnshire Safeguarding Children Board have begun to produce monthly newsletters detailing information for parents/teachers advising them of topical information regarding Internet Safety to help with their young children.

The newsletters can be accessed by clicking on the link below.

Useful websites for Parents/Carers on Internet safety

CEOP

Homepage – https://www.ceop.police.uk/safety-centre/

Text – Are you worried about online sexual abuse or the way someone has been communicating online? Are you worried this is happening to someone you know? CEOP is here to help, you can make a report to one of CEOP’s child protection advisors who will try to help you safely and securely.

On this page there is also information for parents and professionals to help with a range of matters.

NSPCC/Childline

Homepage – https://www.childline.org.uk/get-support/

Operated by the NSPCC, Childline is the main helpline for children and young people to get help, advice and support on a huge range of matters including bullying, abuse and so much more. Children can contact using a freephone number (0800 1111), email or online chat with a 1-2-1 counsellor.

Internet Matters

Home page – https://www.internetmatters.org

Internet Matters is the main portal in the UK with a huge amount of information for parents and carers to help keep children and young people safe online. On this site you will find advice according to age, advice to help with settings on the devices your children use and much more.

Common Sense Media

Home page – https://www.commonsensemedia.org

There are so many games and apps available it can be difficult for parents to keep up. If your child is asking you about a particular game or app, or if you become aware of them using something without your knowledge and you would like to know more, Common Sense Media will be able to help with reviews and advice.

Online Safety a Guide for Parents Share Aware from the NSPCC

www.thinkuknow.co.uk provides parents with information on internet safety and advice as to where you can go for help.

http://www.kidsmart.org.uk

http://www.digizen.org

http://www.saferinternet.org.uk

Click on the link below to find out about some child friendly search engines produced by CfBT (Lincolnshire School Improvement Service)

Child_FriendlySearch_Engines_for_primary_school_cfbt

IF YOU HAVE CONCERNS ABOUT ANY CHILD’S eSAFETY PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT SCHOOL FOR ADVICE/SUPPORT OR TO REPORT THIS