According to experts, there are around two billion gamers around the world and 25% of them are minors. Indeed, teens and children are becoming hooked on online gaming due to the various games being offered. As such, it becomes difficult for the parents to keep up with the trend and make their children safe online.
One of the first steps that you should do is to engage with your children with regards to the video game. Play together with your children to make it a family affair. According to studies, playing video games together will create a positive impact on the development of the child. It can also strengthen your relationship together. As you play together, you can know their favorite pastime, understand them more, and learn about how they process things.
With that, here are some tips on how you can make your family safe in online gaming:
Age Ratings
Make sure that your child is playing an age-appropriate game. Sometimes, you will buy games according to the content ratings of the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB). There are three components of the ESRB rating system. These are the age appropriateness, interactive elements, and content descriptors.
For the boxed games, the ESRB can provide summaries to provide the parents with a brief description of the kind of content they would have for their child.
As such, you can know about the ESRB ratings on their website. With the ratings, you can decide whether or not the game is appropriate for your family or your children. Also, it is advisable to know the storyline personally so you can check if there are any disturbing scenes. Find out if you are comfortable watching or playing the game with your child.
Parental Controls
The parental controls are available for the computer, console, phone, handheld gaming device, and tablet. You can activate these tools to manage how many hours your kids must spend playing games.
With the parental controls, you can control how much money your child is allowed to spend with the game. You can limit the players who can play with them and which games are off-limits according to the ratings of the ESRB. Moreover, you can have more options via additional software to limit screen time and control what sites a child can visit.
Account Security
With the two-step verification, your child’s account and private information can be protected during the game. There are plenty of games that are connected to the internet today like the agen poker. It can be played on a computer, PlayStation, Xbox, or mobile devices.
As such, you must familiarize yourself with the privacy settings on each device so there will be no surprises in the end.
It is essential to know each app, game, or website and determine its privacy policy. With this, you can have an idea of how they handle the personal information and with whom they share it. Moreover, it is important to remove mentions with regards to your child’s location. Make sure that you enter the correct age of your child so that inappropriate content will be blocked automatically.