this post was submitted on 31 Dec 2025
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[–] Megaman_EXE@beehaw.org 8 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

First I think it depends on what we are considering kids. I was online from age 8 but didn't get into online games or communities until about 10. But in the case of the law, they're often saying anything below 15, 16 or 18 etc. It depends on the country/jurisdiction.

There are lots of places kids can find community. When i was a kid I was playing on neopets, club penguin, old school runescape, guild wars. I made friends with people from all over the place. One of my best friends in my youth is from across the continent, and we have been friends for 20 years now.

I think the bottom line is parents should parent. When I was a kid the PC was in the main room. My parents spoke to me frequently about staying safe online and asked me about what I was doing on the PC. They made sure I was only accessing kid appropriate sites and that I wasn't getting myself into trouble.

Could I have gotten in trouble? Yeah possibly. I also could have gotten kidnapped at the local park