As students return to school in September, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) are raising awareness of children’s safety.
Sgt. Pierre Ladouceur of the New Brunswick RCMP said police are concerned about traffic on the way to school and children’s first-day-of-school pictures.
“Be careful with the personal and location details on those photos — age, school teachers, anything that could easily provide the location of the kids on a daily basis,” Ladouceur said.
He said the RCMP has seen an increase in the number of social media posts with children displaying their personal information on chalkboards or signs in back-to-school photos.
“If you have somebody’s name and grade, you can identify an approximate age,” he said. “By doing that, people can seek a credit card and stuff like that, with names and potential date of birth, or they can fraud the entity at some point.”
He also said he is very concerned when pictures display the student’s teacher. This could give anyone the child’s location on a daily basis.
Ladouceur said it is important to have open and honest conversations with children about online safety.
“We need to make sure we have open communication of what’s going on online with our children,” he said. “And for our children to be aware of their surroundings going to school.”
The Canada Safety Council (CSC) is also urging safety awareness on the way to school. According to the CSC, Transport Canada said the school bus is the safest mode of transport.
However, the CSC said one of the most dangerous parts is getting on and off the school bus. It said children should never be running to catch the bus and should always arrive at the stop at least five minutes prior.
The CSC also said children should always stay on the sidewalk, they should be taught to look both ways twice and to use the handrail when boarding or exiting the bus.
The CSC also said if children are using their bicycle to get to school, they should be at least nine years old and have enough experience to be confident.
