Psychologist believes that parents should know their children’s passwords

Boy with facebook on computer.Photo: Gorm Kallestad / NTB scanpix

Child psychologist Willy-Tore Mørch believes, that parents should know passwords of one’s children for social media. Datatilsynet(Data Inspectorate) disagrees.

 

“There’s no reason why it should be secret. When they are under 18, parents have responsibility for what their children do and have access to”, says Mørch to NRK.

He believes parents should pay attention to the children especially when they are under the age of sexuality.

However, the Data Inspectorate believes that a lot is needed for parents to access children’s users.

“All children are entitled to a form of privacy. The older they are, the more important it is to take care of their privacy”, says Senior Communication Advisor Guro Skåltveit in the Data Inspectorate of the State Channel.

She suggests that parents may have an agreement with the children to have their passwords in a closed envelope that can be opened if all parties agree.

“Parents have a duty to follow up to a certain extent, but to follow up does not mean breaking into, making things hidden and monitoring,” says Skåltveit.

Both the child psychologist and the communications adviser agree, that it is important to have good communication with the children.

“The most important thing is to be clear that if something goes wrong, it is not the child’s fault,” says Skåltveit.

 

© NTB Scanpix / Norway Today