Online Safety – 28/02/24 – VPNs

As technology becomes increasingly integrated into our daily lives, it’s essential to understand tools like Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) and their potential implications for your children’s online activities. VPNs, in simple terms, are secure networks that allow users to access the internet privately and anonymously by masking their IP addresses. While VPNs offer legitimate privacy and security benefits, they can also be utilised by children to bypass parental controls and filters set up to regulate their online access. It’s crucial to have open and ongoing conversations with your children about responsible internet usage to help establish whether this could be something your child knows about. Additionally, regularly monitoring and updating your parental controls can help mitigate the risks associated with VPN usage.