As surely as children need summer reminders about sunburn and water safety, these days online security is just as important. The extra leisure time for kids usually translates to extra Internet time.

Jessie Schmidt of the Better Business Bureau in Sioux Falls says parents need to know what there children are doing on the internet.

“I was talking to a group of parents about this issue. I asked them if they look at their kid’s texts. Keep in mind we are their parents and not their friend. Someday I can hopefully be their friend. But for now I own the phone and I am paying the bills. The consensus of the parents is this: it is our responsibility to read their texts.”

Schmidt says some young online users are sexting.

“You hear about these boys and girls taking semi inappropriate photos of themselves and then sharing them with the love of their life at 14-years-old. Then the next thing you know they’re not the love of their life. Yet, these pictures are being shared everywhere forever.”

Schmidt says parents need to know who their child is chatting with on line.

“We need to have those conversations with our kids and know where they’re going on the internet. You get these pictures out there and then cyber bullying takes a whole life of its own. We hear how often young teens are really taking the most serious step of all in committing suicide over something that was said.”

Schmidt says parents should know their child’s passwords so they can keep tabs on who their friends are and what they are sharing with them.

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