Kids are curious and cyber shark attractors know it. We all need to be careful when doing an online search-you never know what you might find. Simple searches can get kids to undesirable web sites. Sometimes they find their way there using a link sent from a friend.
Another trick that attractors use to pull in visitors takes advantage of typos and spelling errors that occur when the user mistypes a web address. It‘s called an ambush. Nearly four out of ten kids have experienced it. Your kid can make a simple typing mistake and end up in a very bad place that will not only serve up undesirable content but that could deliver a virus and harm your PC. Instead of guessing and typing a URL directly, we suggest using Google or Bing with a safe search turned on and locked to find a site.
- Bob Kessinger, CyberPatrol
Bob is the co-author of Surfing Among the Cyber Sharks: Parent’s Guide to Protecting Children and Teens from Online Risk
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