Can of Worms: Is it okay to spy on your teenager online?

Or rather, Is it okay for parents to spy on their kids online?

I recently discovered the new show 'Can of Worms' which discusses a variety of topics/issues we see present in society nowadays. While the first half asked us whether being called 'Bogan' was offensive, the second half brought up the more serious issue of children and parents in relation to the internet.

The question itself brings up various issues. If I were to ask the average teenager, the stereotypical response would be a definite NO, with invasion of privacy being used as an excuse. This is typically overridden by parents who state that 'It's only for their own good.' That's almost like stating that hacking into another country's military satellite in order to gather information about their actions is perfectly fine, since we're only keeping tabs on what they're doing to make sure that nothing bad happens to us.

Okay, so that was a bit of an exaggeration, but you get the general idea.

So, is it okay to spy on your kids online? If we were to rephrase that question as, 'Would you like it if your parents were spying on you online?' My answer would most definitely be NO. After careful deliberation, my answer to the original question would still be 'No.'

I think it'd much better if you didn't introduce a child to the internet until they reach a certain age, or rather, a certain level of maturity. It's be best if you didn't allow a child to run around blindly on the net on his/her own, so the whole 'spying on your kids online' makes sense. But, if they're at an age where they've established a decent set of morals and rules for themselves, you should be able to trust them not to do anything too dodgy online.

So why wouldn't I want my parents spying on me online? Well, isn't it obvious? I'm not necessarily doing anything dodgy and I'm' not a fan of social networking sites. I don't play that many online games (anymore), either. But really, the thought that they're spying on you while you're researching, while you're downloading music, reading blogs, or just watching funny videos really bugs me. I once had my aunt sit down next to me for about half an hour while I was browsing DeviantArt. Just watching what I was doing. It's very awkward and uncomfortable. It's like having someone looking over your shoulder at everything you're doing. It's annoying.

The fact of the matter is, there will always be something parents don't want their children to do. It may not be something as drastic as smoking or taking drugs, but it's still there. My parents hate anime. I don't stop watching it. I treat it like I treat my books. It's a hobby and I love it. My parents hate the music I listen to as well, but that's not gonna stop me from listening to it. That little bit of freedom we may or may not have on the net is like a dose of medication that helps us get through our hectic teenage lives (which we're really overreacting about, according to the majority of adults I've met) and I would honestly hate it if I found out that my parents were monitoring every little thing I did both online and in real life. Control freaks, much? They can't protect us from everything out there and we're not all as naive as they think. Unfortunately. I think that if we've grown up well enough, we'll know our limits, know the dangers, and know what we should or shouldn't do.

So that's my two cents on the topic. What do you think?