Your children may be in danger: do you know what Grooming is?

Listen this article

Find out how to prevent this trend that endangers children and adolescents

Although access to a screen or a mobile device is becoming more widespread at an early age, there are some problems that can arise and of which you should be aware if you decide to give your child access to the web.

Leer en español: Tus hijos pueden estar en peligro: ¿sabes qué es el Grooming?

One of the most serious is called Grooming, which consists, according to Miro Security, in the deliberate action of an adult to sexually harass a child through the Internet. The strategy is always the same: the adult creates a false profile, forum, social media account, chat room, or other to communicate and establish a relationship of friendship with minors.

When this happens and they have already won the child's trust, they ask him to send them a photo or video of a sexual nature. Then, once the objective has been achieved, a period of blackmail begins in which the victim is threatened with making the material public if they do not comply with their requests.

However, there are other occasions in which the predator accesses the victim's information using force, stealing their passwords, or using third parties or alternative means.

What preventive measures can be taken?

1. The web portal CIBERBULLYING recommends not providing images or compromising information to anyone or allowing them to be easily obtained by third parties. Try to be attentive to the movements of your children on the web without taking away their right to privacy.

2. IS4K or Internet Safe For Kids recommends to consider if our children are mature enough to have their own mobile or device, understanding the responsibility that entails.

3. Install a parental control system for the little ones. Remember that access should be progressive and accompanied as children grow up. As far as possible, the system should be supervised by an adult, so that children and young people learn to use it safely and responsibly.

You may also be interested in: How to give a medicine to your baby

4. Establish hours of use of the devices and teach them where will be the place to use them, ensuring that those are common spaces.

5. Educate them about the multiple risks that may exist online, establish good communication with them. This will allow you to know their habits on the Internet and their friends online.

What to do if the damage is already done?

• It is never advisable to give in to blackmail or threats. On the contrary, evidence of criminal activity must be sought and collected and a complaint must be made. Get in touch with the competent authorities immediately.

LatinAmerican Post | Luisa Báez
Translated from "Tus hijos pueden estar en peligro: ¿sabes qué es el grooming?"