Hector's World™ and your child
 The single greatest safety advantage for children online is to have an active dialogue about their online life with the trusted adults in their lives. In their very young years, this might mean they only access the internet with an adult by their side. Whether parent, guardian, auntie or grandparent, that active interest is the best defence against negative online experiences.
While you are watching episodes with your child (or grandchild), there may be questions that arise from the episode action. The information below is an informal guide to the episode messages. We have offered a couple specific examples from the first set of episodes, and illustrated how you can amplify the messages through discussion. With your help your child can make the most of the episode content, and thus be better prepared to use ICT safely and wisely.
Q. Why was Ming worried about her friends giving out their personal information (like name, address, school etc) to other people?
A.
- Ming knew that it was ok for Ranjeet to give out his personal information to Miss Finney because Miss Finney was their Youth Group Teacher and Ranjeet's parents already knew and trusted her.
- She also knew that they had to ask a parent or caregiver before giving out any personal information to anyone.
- Ming was aware that some people might try and use her friends' information in ways that weren't safe. When they showed the crowd Sprat's name and address etc on the big screen there were some pretty scary fish in that crowd.
- Ming was looking out for her friends and making sure that they were making safe decisions.
Cybersafety point for children: Before you enter your details (your name, address and phone number) anywhere on the internet, stop and check with a caregiver. Remember that you and a parent can check out the Terms and Conditions and the Privacy Statement of a website together to find out what they will do with your information, before you enter your details.
Q. Why did Hector want to talk to Kui in the last episode?
A.
- Kui was an adult that Hector trusted.
- Hector knew that it was good to talk to a safe adult about what he was worried about.
- Hector knew that even though Kui may not have known about the games they were playing, that she would undertand how he felt and would know what to do.
Cybersafety point for children: Even if your parent doesn't know a lot about the technology, they can still help you work out any worries that you have about things that happen online. If needed, your parent can get help from your nearest cybersafety agency. In New Zealand, that would be NetSafe.
Q. Why did Squid want Sprat's personal information?
A.
- Squid said that he wanted Sprat's personal information so that he could enter him into a competition to win '10 free music downloads' - but what he really wanted to do was to sell Sprat's (and other creatures') personal information to other bad creatures for money.
- Squid tried to hide the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Statement by covering it in ink so that Hector and his friends couldn't see in case they got suspicious.
- Squid was a part of a gang called the Info Gang who were going to sell Sprat's (and other creatures') personal details. Their information was going to be sold to some sharks who wanted to use the information to find ''certain little fishies'', and to someone who wanted to send ''spam'' (email that they didn't want) trying to scam them (rip them off).
Cybersafety point for children: When someone online offers you something for free or wants you to enter a competition, and then asks for your details, check it out with an adult before you go ahead. Also, when you enter a competition, make sure that you check out the Terms and Conditions and the Privacy Statement with an adult. This can help both of you judge if it is safe to give out your personal information.
Q. Why did Tama feel scared in episode 4 ('The Info gang')?
A.
- Tama felt scared when he lost his friends and he was alone and it was dark.
- When Tama was looking into the tent and listening to what the Info Gang was saying, he felt like something wasn't quite right. When he heard what the Info gang were saying and what they wanted to do with his and his friends' personal information, he realised that information was going be sold onto other people.
- Tama realised that he and his friends might be hurt because the Info Gang were going to sell their information to others who might want harm Tama and his friends, and others.
- Tama knew that talking about his scared feelings was the right thing to do, and he wanted to tell Hector about what he had heard the Info Gang say.
Cybersafety point for children: If you have uneasy feelings about anything online, it is good to stop and get some help. It is also good to remember that you can lose control of your information once you put it on the internet, as other people can copy or sell it onto others. Once it is on the internet, it is there forever.
A special note for parents and caregivers
How is the ocean like the internet?
You might be wondering why we chose the ocean as a metaphor for the online environment (you may even need to explain this to your child at some stage). We think that the ocean is like the online environment because it is big, vast, and it contains things that look beautiful and fun but can be dangerous. Also, the ocean is like the internet, as what we do in this environment can affect others (like pollution in the sea).
You can help your child make the links between the internet and the ocean by asking them about certain aspects of the internet that they enjoy and then talking about something in the Hector's World™ episodes which is similar. An example of this might be online games. These are shown in the episodes as the games arcade and even in the wider setting of the carnival (fun, free, flashing lights, razzle dazzle etc). The episodes show that some of the games and displays at the carnival are safe and fun (like Constable Solosolave and Mr Gurnard's stands), while other things (like the games arcade and Mr Squid's stand) are not. This is to help children understand that online there are some trustworthy websites and some untrustworthy sites.
If you would like to find out more about the specific cybersafety points included in these episodes, you can look over the Hector's World™ lesson plans for episodes 1-5 where the points are listed.
If you have any questions or comments about Hector's World™, you are welcome to email feedback@hectorsworld.co.nz . NetSafe - the Internet Safety Group is available to answer any cybersafety or security queries you may have. You can contact them on queries@netsafe.org.nz or, in New Zealand, 0508 NETSAFE (0508 638 723).
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