Kids and Facebook

[pidget]

Help!! Not sure if I am posting in right place or not. Am in a muddle about whether to let my daughter have a facebook account or not? I will start by saying that at 12yrs old I know she is too young but not a day goes by without me getting requests from her classmates to be their friend, her argument of course is that if they have one why cant she. My question is can she have an account that I can oversee without being her friend as I dont want to edit what I do so she cant see. I know a lot of responses will be not old enough so cant have it and I have put off for ages but as more of her friends are doing it am finding it harder to refuse. Am really trying to be strong and hold out till 13 which I believe is the age she can do it but if there was a way I could monitor it may reconsider.

[sara3]

you could make her tell you her password, and access it yourself to "edit".

[chelle7272]

Yes I would let her as long as you had her password so you could access it. That's what I did with my son at that age.

[pidget]

Thanks friendly people, thought of having her password but sure she would just delete what she doesn't want me to see. How do I hide my wall from her?

[Hopkirk]

Explain your worries to her, and show some trust in her.

[pidget]

Its not neccessarily her I dont trust but when things like favourite sex toy and position go around it worries me a bit, yes she knows about stuff but I find this more than I want her getting into.

[dividimus31]

There are two concerns that you should be aware about. Firstly she is a child and has no right to any privacy as far as the internet is concerned. Secondly Search for key logger Software online or at you local computer supply store. Key loggers allow you to find out what other users do on your computer when you are not there. It is designed for the hidden computer monitoring and the monitoring of the computer activity. Key loggers are capable of catching all keystrokes, capturing the on screen images, logging the programs being run and closed, blocking web sites, recording chat, etc. There are many different programs, so be sure to shop around for the product that best fits your needs.

nstall the key logger software to your computer. Most software will have a public mode as well as a covert mode. This gives you the opportunity to run the program without being detected if you so desire.

Block sites you do not wish your child to visit.

Inform your child that you will be monitoring their activities. By telling your kids that you will be watching. You give them the opportunity to not get into trouble. It will help remove their temptation to explore off limit content.

[ummmm]

My youngest is 11 and he's had an account for years. I know his password and only I am allowed to accept friends on his behalf.

He mainly uses it for the games....

[Hopkirk]

Dividimus, are you seriously suggesting getting spyware so you can see exactly what your children do on the computer?

That is one sure way to destroy any trust the child has in you. I wouldn't dream of doing that to my children.

[sheribee]

Hey x My daughter is 10 and has an account. I know her log in and password, but i dont tend to check her as she knows the rules. She is only allowd to accept people she knows and i have set her privacy settings. She is my friend on fb so i can see her page, friends etc that way too.

[chattykathy]

It's really hard when there is so much pressure on your daughter and you! Surely you should set the password so you have to be the one logging on for her so then she can't access FB without your knowledge and you can check 'activity'
Young people need to be protected from all sorts of weirdos/predators and as her parent you have a duty to do it.

[madmaggot]

The lower age limit for a face book account is 13.