UK Childhood Advisor to Parents: Spy on Your Children

My 13-year old isn’t into texting or social media yet, but if she were, I would be wise to read her messages when she wasn’t looking, at least according to Claire Perry, UK Prime Minister David Cameron’s newly appointed adviser on childhood. According to Daily Mail, Perry argues that the notion that children’s electronic messages ought to be private is “bizarre.”

Aside from the outdated suggestion that parents unplug their routers to keep kids off the Internet in wee hours of the morning, I agree with Perry’s stance. It’s our job to keep our kids safe both on and offline, and if that means snooping, then I’m all for it.

Rather than “spying” on my kid, though, I’d prefer to have an open discussion with her about practicing safe surfing. Of course, I’m not naïve enough to believe that she’ll always follow my suggestions. So, will I take precautionary measures to ensure that she’s safe on the Web? Absolutely. I’d just prefer to have Qustodio do the dirty work for me.