Social Virtual Worlds are fun and easy to play and cater to the interests of young virtual gamers in every part of the world. However, the internet, and more so internet games, can be a pretty dangerous place. There are quite a few precautions that are worth keeping in mind in order to avoid any undesirable experience when taking part in such games in the first place. Here are a few of them:

#1 Avoid sharing any personal information
One of the most important points that you'll need tom instill in your child before allowing them to play any forms of online games, be it a social virtual game or an MMO, is to not share any personal information as they are communicating with other players in the game. This is absolutely crucial as you may never really know if the players in these sorts of games have any bad intentions.

#2 Make sure you to use a secure internet connection and game account
Ensuring that you have a safe and secure internet connection when allowing your child to play social virtual games (or any online games in fact) is something that is absolutely necessary. The internet connection that you use should be one that is protected by a username and a strong password so that malicious people will not be able to hack into your network and possibly track your child's browsing and gaming habits.

This is also true for your child's gaming account on a social virtual game site or on an MMO. In fact, it is common for parents to set up an account for their child first using the child's email address that's reserved for online gaming (if they have one; if not, you might want to consider setting up one) and set a password that both the child and the parents can agree on.

#3 Avoid playing games in the late hours of the night
Similar to in real life, it would be a better idea to explore the virtual worlds in social virtual games in the day time or even in the afternoon rather than in the late hours of the night. It is in the late hours of the night where most dangerous individuals tend to emerge as opposed to the earlier hours when the gaming websites are fully crowded and it is more likely that there's a game moderator that's available to assist if needed.

#4 Ensure that the gaming website has a good reputation for being kid-safe
You should always make sure that the website that your child is playing virtual or MMO games at is one that is of repute. This is a gaming website that should have a license of its own and should have been in existence for a good four to five years at least if not for longer. Best yet, if they have obtained the proper credentials for a KidSAFE Seal.

Or better yet, simply don’t play at unknown gaming platforms. If the website hosting the game is unknown to you, you should refrain from using it. Alternatively, you can carry out a "background check" on the gaming website and find out about its reputation before allowing your child to play virtual games there.

#5 Play test the game before letting your child play it
This is something we'd like to call "demo gaming". As parents, you could and probably should sign up for the site and try the game out before letting your child play the game. If you encountered any incidences in the game that makes you feel uncomfortable or that you think would make your child uncomfortable, then naturally, the game may not be suitable for your child.

#6 Teach your child how to report bad players
Everybody has to play their part when it comes to safeguarding a community of players in a game, be it an MMO or a social virtual game. So, if your child happens to be harassed in a game, they should know that it is their responsibility to at least let you know so you could report the said harasser, or they could report the trouble-making player themselves. Of course, they should also understand that without proof, the reports will be difficult to validate by the staff assigned to the case. However, once a problematic player is reported, you can be rest assured that it will be followed up immediately.