Webcams

How do I make it safer?

Monitor your adolescent’s use of webcams as well as the posting and exchanging of pictures/videos online. Once pictures or information are sent over the Internet, control over what happens to the pictures or information is lost. Teach your adolescent to be mindful of what they send.

Reinforce to your adolescent the public nature of the Internet.
Teach your adolescent that it is illegal for people to manufacture, possess or distribute naked or sexually explicit pictures of children under 18 years of age. Explain to your adolescent that s/he needs to tell a safe adult if s/he is presented with this situation.
Explain to your adolescent that it's illegal to threaten someone online or offline. Explain that s/he should never comply with threats. If someone threatens her/him online, s/he needs to tell a safe adult.
Suggest your adolescent review Respect Yourself, a website designed to teach teens about the risks they face when sending pictures or videos by email, Instant Messaging (IM) or by posting them online. This site guides teens through the risks and provides them with strategies to help keep them safe.