Sexting and Your Child

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Our cyber mom (and expert) gives tips to help you engage with your child about the DON’Ts of sexting

What your tween/teenage daughter or son do online may not make tabloid headlines, as is the common case with the Miley’s and Justin’s of the world, but any form of sexting - the sending and receiving of sexual content by text, email, photos or videos from one mobile phone to another - should be taken very seriously by parents as it can be pose many risks to your child’s reputation and potentially lead to dangerous behaviour.
Here are a few tips to help you engage with your child about the DON’Ts of sexting:

• Talk to your kids, even if the issue hasn't directly affected your family. Ask, "Have you heard of sexting?" and "Tell me what you think it is."
• Use examples appropriate for your child's age. For younger children, alert them that texts should never contain pictures of people without their clothes on, kissing or touching each other in ways they haven't seen before. For teens, be very specific that sexting often involves pictures of a sexual nature and is considered pornography
• Regularly check photos posted on your child’s social networking accounts
• Talk with other parents. Chances are other parents are going through the same struggles as you to keep kids safe. Consider sharing your situation and the tips you've learned
• Create household rules and clear repercussions when caught sexting or sending/receiving inappropriate, sexually explicit content. The repercussions may be taking away their cell phone privilege or Internet usage, but be sure to explain to your child the long-term effects their actions may have (i.e. private content getting in the hands of strangers, risks to their reputation over the long term)

Sexual curiosity among tweens and teens is natural and creating rules or punishments may not necessarily stop your child from sexting. In some cases, it could make them more eager to explore it, especially when their friends and favourite celebrities are trying it. The key is always to keep lines of communication open, no matter how embarrassing the subject matter may be to you and your child.