My search turned up what? - WBTV 3 News, Weather, Sports, and Traffic for Charlotte, NC

My search turned up what?

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By Kristen Miranda - bio | email

CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) -  It's happened to all of us at one point or another.  You are searching for something on the internet, click on the results and you see something you wish you had not.  That is happening to kids more and more as they go online using the home computer, smart phones and iPads.  The good news is there is something you can do about it to try to block some of those search results you would rather not expose your kids to. 

WBTV's cyber expert, Theresa Payton, explains what you can do to avoid those awful search situations.

There are some new search features available you may want to check out and set up each place your kid surfs the net.

  1. Google's new feature:  Google Safe Search.  You can set the filter to "strict" and lock the settings in so your kids cannot change them.  You can also show your kids their search page called Google Kids.
  2. Bing offers a "strict" or "moderate" filter for their browser.
  3. Ask Jeeves has an "Ask Kids"
  4. YouTube now has a YouTube Safe Search which you can set and lock 

You may decide you want to fine tune your search engines at home on the computer, smart phones, and any place your kids surfs the web.  Theresa has listed a few web sites that you may find helpful.

WEB RESOURCES:

To lock YouTube:  http://www.safesearchkids.com/youtube-parental-controls.html

Google Safe Search:  http://www.safesearchkids.com/google-for-kids.html

Bing Search:  http://www.bing.com/settings.aspx

For a listing of more search options for kids try:  http://www.safesearchkids.com/kids-search-engines.html

For screen by screen instructions on how to set your Google search preferences and lock them down to make it hard for your kids to bypass, see:

  http://internet-safety.yoursphere.com/2011/02/google-safe-search-for-your-kids.html

This week's word of the week is:  LUDDITE

Someone who resists technology.  Englishman Ned Lud in the late 1700s protested new automation.  Anyone that agreed with his cause was called a Luddite.  As people resist smart phones, tablets, the internet, and social networking they are known by techies as a Luddite. 

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