Safeguarding Update: XBOX

Many parents have concerns about their children playing video games. They worry that their children are spending too much time gaming, with all the negative impacts of this on their wellbeing and development. Though valid concerns, there are also dangers that could be even more threatening. Xbox Live is much more than just a gaming console. It is actually a gaming community, connecting more than 48 million members around the world who are all looking for social entertainment. On one level this sounds like fun, but such connectivity opens doors to all sorts of risks, so you are advised to consider these three tips:

1. Approve Friend Requests

Gamers can participate in multiplayer games and even chat with each other on the Xbox Live platform. If you decide to let your child participate in this social aspect of gaming, then be sure that you have the ‘finger on the pulse’ of everyone your child is interacting with.

Remember, there are plenty of adult gamers out there, and your child will not necessarily be able to tell the difference between a friend, a peer and a grown-up. The best way to monitor player-to-player communication is to set up parental controls that require your password approval for each friend request. You can do this from the ‘Family Centre’ on the console settings.

2. Restrict Inappropriate Content

Prevent your child playing mature video games. Restrict games and videos based on their ratings. You can do this by going to “Settings” and choosing “Family” from the menu to access this feature.

3. Set Time Limits

It is easy for children of all ages to become absorbed in video games for hours at a time if they are left to their own devices. Evidence suggests that this is not healthy or good for them in terms of their physical and psychological wellbeing - even if the game itself is age-appropriate in terms of its rating.

Xbox’s ‘Family Timer’ allows you to set daily and/or weekly time limits for your child. Once the time is up, the console will shut down until the timer is automatically reset by the parent/carer - the next day or week.

Parents/carers can watch this video tutorial to learn how to activate the ‘Family Timer’ on a console.

Gaming can be a fun and safe activity for children as long as proper boundaries are set and enforced.

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