Internet Sees Increase in 'Parent Spies'

Parents are increasingly visiting social networking websites to 'spy' on their children, according to a study by London School of Economics (LSE).

Parents are using technical methods in order to keep track of their kids' plans and thoughts through sites such as Facebook, MySpace and Bebo.

With concerns about stalkers and paedophiles on the rise, parents have the opportunity to keep up to date with the social lives of their kids through the sites.

According to the study, 41 per cent of parents questioned with children aged between nine and 17 were checking the site history on their computers to discover which sites had been visited.

Jan Fry of Parentline Plus outlined a number of reasons why this is a growing trend: "In many ways it is a general anxiety about children pulling away from the family, and a fear the computer is beginning to rule their lives, although with others it is concern about whether their children are too young to be going online."

However she did support parents who have genuine concerns about their children: "If it looks like it is becoming obsessive, if your child is upset when they come off the internet, or if it looks like it is becoming a substitute for friendship, I would recommend taking action."