PHOENIX — Kids enter a dangerous world the moment you hand them a device.
“The occurrence of online crime is on the rise," said Martin Hellmer, FBI supervisory special agent.
Predators are always lurking, searching for the right moment to strike.
“Parents need to have honest conversations with their kids about the dangers that exist online," said Hellmer.
That is why you need to take all necessary steps to protect them.
“Ensure that privacy settings are set to the highest level, and they need to monitor their kids' online activity," said Hellmer.
Know every app and every activity that your child is doing on their device. There’s a simple way to monitor and restrict them.
“Go to settings, and then into general, then click restrictions," said Hellmer.
Once you enable restrictions, you can restrict apps and even restrict content like only allowing G-rated movies to play.
“Children shouldn’t be allowed to download just any app. In my house, they can’t download an app unless I say it’s OK," said Hellmer.
There are a few apps you can download on your kids phone and your phone to take safety to the next level.
One is Net Nanny, which allows you to control your kids' internet activity remotely by blocking certain websites and getting notifications if they search a key word that you have banned.
Another app called Secure Teen could take it too far for some parents, but it gives you your kids call logs and a list of their text messages, so you know who they are talking to.
“Kids should be highly skeptical of anyone they meet online, because they might not always be who they say they are," said Hellmer.
A third app called Teen Safe does the same thing as the Secure Teen app, but it also tracks their GPS location so you always know where they are.
At the FBI, computer scientists, technical analysts and special agents are constantly monitoring cyber crimes and bringing people to justice.
“We very vigorously investigate online crimes and crimes against children," said Hellmer.
If you suspect suspicious activity, report it to the FBI at www.ic3.gov.
