 Many kids enjoy using the Web to find entertaining activities like online games. Sometimes when searching for a new game site they might also find gaming and gambling sites. While most games and activities are legal for minors, gambling is not. See below for tips about how to help your kids avoid online gambling. What's the difference between games and gaming sites?The main differences between the types of sites are as follows: | • | Game sites usually feature card, board, word, arcade, or puzzle game types with automatic tracking and scoring. No money, real or artificial, is exchanged. | | • | Gaming sites might include scenarios in which people win or lose some artificial currency. | | • | Gambling sites usually involve winning or losing actual money. |
Help your kids avoid online gamblingParents should decide what types of games or game sites are appropriate for their children. For example, you could base your criteria on the type of game (card and board only, or strategy and fantasy only), whether the game is played interactively with others online, whether the site offers the game, or on a case-by-case basis. Some other things you can do are: 1. | Know where your kids go and what they do online. | 2. | Establish clear rules about what online games your children can play and keep Internet-connected computers in an open area, not in your children's bedrooms. | 3. | Remind your kids that it is illegal for them to gamble online. | 4. | Help your kids understand how gambling works. Online gambling operations are in business to make a profit. They take in more money than they pay out. | 5. | Make sure your kids always ask permission before they use your credit card number online. Online gambling generally requires the use of a credit card. If kids accrue debts online, they could ruin your credit rating and impact their own credit rating down the road. | 6. | Explain that online gambling can be addictive. People can gamble uninterrupted and undetected for hours at a time. Gambling in isolation and using credit may lead to addictive gambling patterns. |
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