How most parents snoop on their children

As much as parent pretend to allow their children run their lives, the are tempted to check out what their 'angel' are up to lately. Six out of ten parents admit they regularly read their children’s emails, texts and Facebook messages, a study has found. They believe that, despite the invasion of privacy, snooping is necessary to keep tabs on who their children engage with online, researchers say. The study also found one in ten parents have gone as far as to find out their son or daughter’s password, despite their offspring’s best attempts to keep it from them. But, as a result, one in three parents have been racked with guilt after hacking into their child’s email or Facebook account, according to the survey of 2,000 parents of youngsters aged 10-17. One in ten parents have found out their child’s password so they can keep an eye on them. Alex Balan of internet security firm BullGuard, which carried out the survey, said: 'Parents do face a real moral dilemma as to whether they should check what their children are doing online. 'It’s understandable to want to keep tabs on the sites that they are visiting but whether to read private emails, texts and messages poses a real quandary for parents. TOP 10 WAYS PARENTS SNOOP 1. Reading messages on social network sites 2. Checking their internet history 3. Reading their text messages 4. Monitoring list of friends on social networks 5. Checking pictures on social network sites 6. Reading their emails 7. Checking their call list. 8. Finding out their passwords. 9. Asking teachers to monitor on internet use. 10. Getting a sibling to help to snoop 'Whilst you want to look out for your child and ensure they are safe you also want them to be technologically savvy and have their own independence.' The study found that one in five parents have been ‘shocked’ by content they have discovered in their children’s emails and texts or on their Facebook accounts, while 17 per cent have had to intervene after their child was threatened online. It also emerged that one in five parents are convinced their children lie about their age to gain access to social networking sites. More than one in ten parents have had to deal with their child being bullied online Alex Balan added: 'It’s a minefield for parents, whilst you want your children to have freedom and make friends you want to ensure they are safe when they are online. 'It’s hard enough watching your children 24/7 in the real world, but keeping tabs on their movements online is the real challenge.'