By Ifeoma Asika, Correspondent Campuses

While many countries slowly ease the lockdown measures that were implemented because of the Coronavirus pandemic, the interest to domestic and international travel starts to increase. Kaspersky throws a light on some travel patterns of parents and their children on the go.

According to the “Responsible Digital Parenting” survey1, 89 per cent of the parents in Nigeria use their gadgets to entertain their child when they travel. Furthermore, 33 per cent of the respondents try to calm down their children with the help of devices and 22 per cent aim to gain some spare time for themselves. As a result, there is a chance that children are often left one-on-one with the gadgets. What is more, 56 per cent of Nigerian children have their own smartphone or tablet, according to the survey. Among such a big number, the majority of children were 2-6 years old when they first got their own device. Nevertheless, 31 per cent of Nigerian parents have not discussed safety rules on the Internet with their child. It means that the children are not always aware of how to behave themselves safely online.

“Most parents give their children gadgets in order to entertain them, spare some time for themselves or calm down their kids. However, they shouldn’t use digital devices uncontrolled. It has been estimated by Kaspersky that 19 per cent of Nigerian parents would like to monitor their child’s digital life better. This can be done by limiting screen time and holding conversations; however, a security solution is needed as well,” states Head of Child Safety at Kaspersky Network, Andrey Sidenko.

In order to teach children to use their gadgets in a beneficial way, to safeguard them from inappropriate content, take the following advice:

Explain to your child the ethics of the Internet (not to write anything offending or insulting, not to post embarrassing, indecent photos, etc.) and safety rules on the Internet (not to respond to strangers, not to publish too much private information etc.).

Communicate with your child. Discover his or her interests and suggest suitable materials and video bloggers. Ensure them that you are a modern parent who understands them and to whom they can always come for a piece of advice.