Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Computer Monitoring Software

If you are seriously interested in understanding computer monitoring, you need to think beyond the basics. This informative article takes a closer look at things you need to know computer monitoring.You may not consider everything you just read to be crucial information about computer monitoring. But do not be surprised if you find yourself recalling and using this very information in the next few days.With advances in technology today, when it comes to software for monitoring children, whatether parents want - is likely to be available! As the popularity and the need for increased monitoring software, makes the need for a reliable source of information on software, including the various functions that are available to parents today.

Parents should keep an eye on their children all day - not only when they do not work. One reason is computer programs, which is gaining popularity because parents cannot physically be at their house to watch a child or teen when they are online. Most parents have jobs and this means that they cannot always be present when their children out of school. Thus, today more and more parents are turning to software tracking than ever!

Keyloggers can also monitor keystrokes, thus, and can actually send you by e-mail so you know, when someone wrote a chosen keyword. It is commonly known as remote access, and it can really help you monitor your children when you are away, and also see what your employees are in place when you can be outside the office or traveler.

Looking Up recorder essential services, Internet services and parental oversight of online monitoring, you can access a range of different services that are able to meet all your monitoring needs. A careful examination of the features offered and the cost can help you decide on the most convenient service. Once you've chosen the right product to download online, you just have a few minute for installation and you are on your way to understand precisely what others are when online.

source:http://www.articlesbase.com/computers-articles/computer-monitoring-software-4333340.html

Monday, March 28, 2011

We Need To Teach Our Kids To Be Tech Savy While Staying Safe

Kids and technology can be a scary combination, and parents are striving to find the right balance between independence and protection for their children.The dangers of technology are well known. “Sex” and “porn” are the fourth and sixth most popular search terms by children on the Internet, according to a study done by Symantec, creators of the Norton online family software.Parents legitimately worry about sexting, texting with strangers, posting of personal information on social networks, online bullying and viewing sexually explicit, violent, or hate-filled material.One of the greatest fears of parents is that their children will be abused by an online sexual predator. The Youth Internet Safety Survey found that 4 percent of kids 10-17 years of age received aggressive unwarranted sexual solicitations on the Internet.When these teens did meet in person with a stranger, in 95 percent of the cases, the sexual contact was “consensual” between a vulnerable teen and a manipulative adult.

The thought that our teen may be exploited by an online stranger is terrifying to any parent. We need to alert our kids to the risks of online contacts, but also want to be careful not to exaggerate the problem and lose credibility.In response to these risks, it seems that more parents are employing surveillance as the way to keep their kids safe. They monitor their teen’s cell phone texts, emails and Internet sites. They covertly install software that records every keystroke on their child’s computer.

“My primary job is to keep my kids safe when they are under my care. When they go off to college, they are on their own,” proclaimed one parent.Here’s the dilemma. You want to keep your kids secure, but you also need to teach them how to become responsible and educated technological citizens when you are not there to monitor their every keystroke or track their every movement with a GPS device.I’ll readily admit that I’m as confused as the parents I counsel, and my advice keeps changing in response to recent research.

Here’s what I think I know at this point.Except in extraordinary circumstances, never covertly monitor your child’s behavior. It destroys trust and credibility.Keep computers in a public setting at least through junior high.If you allow your child to join a social network, make certain that you have complete access to their site.Most importantly, talk lots about this stuff with your kids. Don’t preach, but ask questions and seek their opinions. Remember that your job is to teach them the skills to stay safe when they are not under our care.

source:http://www.daytondailynews.com/lifestyle/ohio-health-news/we-need-to-teach-our-kids-to-be-tech-savy-while-staying-safe-1118722.html

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Preventing Children From Viewing Unsafe Content

The computer has opened the doors to the many types of things which can be done either online or offline. As such, there may be no specific way for parents to know what their children are doing online. Today, websites amount to the thousands of millions on the Internet, so it’s obvious, preventing children from viewing all sorts of stuffs can be very difficult.Some parents are strict with their children about using the Internet as they are aware about how their habits and lifestyles can be changed. On the other hand, other parents do not exert this authority, hence allowing children to view what they want on the Internet.if you want to monitor your kids' activity on the internet. What you need are the right tools and processes to ensure that your kids' internet experience is enjoyable and most of all, safe.

 While some parents allow their children a computer in their bedroom, others prefer the living room. The bedroom represents privacy, so children can be tempted to do as they wish. Alternately, the living room is a very accessible place, hence preventing children from viewing stuffs such as adult content on the Internet.

If you have already explained your children about the various things that they can see on the Internet which does not suit their age, then it depends on how much you trust them. Some children might tell you they have never seen or been to unsafe sites while others will simply lie to you. Some children easily lie to their parents because of the latter’s ignorance in Internet issues. Fortunately, even if you cannot stop your children to view all the negative websites, there are ways to limit the sites they can access. Security levels are available and can be installed on web browsers to prevent children from visiting improper websites.

With the advent of Windows Vista, Microsoft has enhanced the operating system’s security level. So, this means that children may find it hard to access all sorts of websites while they surf the web. A great thing parents can do is to create their personal account on their children’s computer. Every time the children want to use their computer, they have to request their parents for the username and the password which remains secret. You as the parent must make sure that you have the highest control on the computer to better monitor your children.

With an administrator account, you will be able to know what your children have been doing online and what sites they have accessed. Also, you will have the ability to see what files your children have saved or worked with. In brief, you will have an overview about how your children are using their computer. Besides, letting your children aware that you will be keeping an eye on them, they may most probably feel reluctant to see and do unsafe things on their computer.

Another good way to know what your children are doing is to frequently have a look at the history. The computer will always keep a history about the things which have been done during the day, unless the children delete them. For this reason, having full control over the computer is imperative.

source:http://www.articlesbase.com/teenagers-articles/preventing-children-from-viewing-unsafe-content-541356.html

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Information On Internet Safety for Kids Age 14-17 Years Old

Kids at this age start to exercise full freedom and independence. Sometimes, they try new things in order to test their capacity. But still, they lack the experience to judge things the right way and must be guided in areas where they are likely to commit mistakes, including the use of the internet.
Internet threats to Kids Age 14-17 Years Old

Kids at this age play online games, download music, and shop online. Most boys of this age engage in online gambling, look at explicit adult sites, gore, violence, and adult humor. Both boys and girls enter chat rooms and engage in private chats or use instant messaging like Yahoo! Messenger or MSN Messenger.

They are more welcome to accommodate online acquaintances and build relationships online that would possibly end up in a real-life meeting. They are more prone to receive pornographic spam and will likely end up clicking links that contain explicit material. They can easily be persuaded to join online contests and fill out forms that ask for personal information.

These may not seem to be a danger for them since they "are just trying out new things." But these are the things that you should watch out for.


Kids at this age start to exercise full freedom and independence. Sometimes, they try new things in order to test their capacity. But still, they lack the experience to judge things the right way and must be guided in areas where they are likely to commit mistakes, including the use of the internet.

Internet threats to Kids Age 14-17 Years Old

Kids at this age play online games, download music, and shop online. Most boys of this age engage in online gambling, look at explicit adult sites, gore, violence, and adult humor. Both boys and girls enter chat rooms and engage in private chats or use instant messaging like Yahoo! Messenger or MSN Messenger.

They are more welcome to accommodate online acquaintances and build relationships online that would possibly end up in a real-life meeting. They are more prone to receive pornographic spam and will likely end up clicking links that contain explicit material. They can easily be persuaded to join online contests and fill out forms that ask for personal information.

These may not seem to be a danger for them since they "are just trying out new things." But these are the things that you should watch out for.

Safety tips:

•    Keep the internet-connected computer outside their bedrooms

•    Create a rule on how to properly use the internet. Set a time where they can access the internet. Make sure they follow it.

•    If they are using the instant messaging, ask them on discuss their friends on the list. Tell them not to talk to strangers. Tell them to enter friendly and moderated chat rooms only.

•    Encourage them to talk to you about the people they meet online.

•    Tell them not to trust anyone online.

•    Set firewall or filtering software so that they can't access websites that contain explicit materials such as violence and pornography.

•    Remind your kids on the risks that online gambling may bring.

•    Tell them not to give up any personal information such as names, addresses, and bank account numbers.

•    Teach your kids to check with you first whenever they make online financial transactions including selling and buying online.

•    Tell your kids to exercise ethical behavior online and not to engage in fights and bullying.

•    Tell your kids not to open junk mails or download attachments from unknown senders.

source:http://www.articlesbase.com/home-and-family-articles/information-on-internet-safety-for-kids-age-1417-years-old-1039110.html

Monday, March 21, 2011

How To Make The Web Safe For Kids

Following this year's Safer Internet Day, which took place last month, NSPCC Northern Ireland has called on parents and carers to make sure both they and their children are web-wise.With social media constantly evolving, children are communicating online not just through their PC, but on mobile phones and game consoles. Understanding the internet and the risks it can pose is the first step to keeping your child safe.Neil Anderson, national head of service for NSPCC Northern Ireland, said: “The internet can be a wonderful resource, but it is not without its pitfalls.“Safer Internet Day has offered an opportunity for parents to find out more about the online environment, and make sure their children understand the risks and can make sensible and informed choices.“As young people across the region log on to play games, chat to peers and socialise, I would urge parents to find an opportunity to talk about the possible dangers online. Not only can you never really be sure who you are talking to, but without meaning to do so you can make yourself vulnerable by giving away personal information.“Parents can play their part by talking openly to their children about their activities on the internet, ensuring they follow advice on internet safety and encouraging them to speak out if they see anything that makes them feel upset or uncomfortable.”

While interactive social media technology continues to grow, the potential for misuse is high. Risks can include cyberbullying, grooming and potential abuse by online predators, identity theft and exposure to inappropriate content.

The NSPCC is offering parents some advice on how to make cyberspace safer:

• Help your children to understand that they should never give out personal details such as their email address, mobile number, school name or arrangements for meeting up with friends.

• Make them aware that they need to think carefully about the information and pictures they post on their profiles. Once published online, anyone can change or share these images.

•If your child receives spam or junk email and texts, remind them never to believe their contents, reply to them or use them.

•Help your child to understand that some people lie online and that they should never meet up with any strangers.

source:http://www.iol.co.za/scitech/technology/internet/how-to-make-the-web-safe-for-kids-1.1042425

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Software For Monitoring Children on the Internet

You can obtain software for monitoring children on the internet that will work very effectively for tracing back footprints of their online travels, while protecting them from violence and adult material. Here are some important features you should make sure your monitoring software includes:


1. Encrypted log file. This is where everything will be stored and you'll be able to access it by email. This makes things completely invisible. The child will not be able to see, access, change, or delete the file. Encrypted log files can be sent over email at various intervals so you'll be updated constantly on computer activity.

2. Screenshot capability. With this you will be able to have screenshots automatically taken at varying intervals. Now you can see exactly whats on the screen and make a determination of whether or not it crosses the line for child viewing.

3. Capturing keystrokes. This can help identify and record user keystrokes, see what websites are being typed in, and so forth.

4. Ease of use. Software for monitoring children on the internet should be easy to use, and easy to bring up the monitoring results or records of activity occurring on your computer.

5. Download online. For immediate use you should find software for monitoring children on the internet right online, available for download. No trips to the computer store are necessary, as you can save time and set up the monitoring process immediately through keylogger software programs online. Many of these programs will have multiple uses. For instance they can be used for employee monitoring and even cheating spouses, so don't be turned away if you see these tag lines for use. The programs should also mention children monitoring as well.

source:http://ezinearticles.com/?Software-For-Monitoring-Children-on-the-Internet&id=1351265

Monday, March 14, 2011

Efficacy of Computer Activity Monitoring

Computer monitoring - a common topic these days. We have hardly ever wondered of a tool that would work as a computer tracking system in a computer network. Computer Activity Monitor is a wondrous innovation that helps you to know what your employees do when they are supposed to work during office hours.Computer Activity Monitor proves to be beneficial in company's interest. Deploying the software help you find out any loss of money and/or leakage of confidential information by member of your employee staff. You get most detailed information regarding each and every computer activity being performed by employees. Being a robust, powerful tool, Computer Activity Monitor software allows you to track various computers in a particular LAN.

You get to know various things, which ultimately help in achieving complete efficient control over the employees' desktop activities. Whether it is a library public network, university or commercial organization network - Computer Activity Monitor software is a solution for all.

You get the following information once you deploy an efficient computer monitoring software in your organization. You are able to view LIVE coverage of remote desktops activities and that too at a single centralized  platform.You get to monitor numerous computers at the same time at same platform. Web surfing, history logging, real time tracking, chatting, personal emails, online shopping, newspaper  reading, illegitimate net surfing, etc. all this comes under scanner instantly.There is total control over the monitored computers. You can perform admin operations like Lock Computers, Restart Computers, Shut down Computers, Log Off  Computers, Start Screen Saver,Remove Wallpaper from the monitored computer.You can even record the computer desktop activities for future reference. This information can be later used for the deeper analysis and advanced report generation.Computer Activity Monitor software also provides provision of offline recording. That is if you are not at your system seat to monitor the employees' activities. You can simply schedule the offline recording which will work in background without any botheration. All in all you get complete control over the monitored computers and employees indirectly. Any computer in the network under control can be spied remotely. You may tune into efficient computer monitoring software that provides perfect surveillance solution for all monitored computers.Therefore, you can see that with Computer Activity Monitor you can protect your company any employee sabotages, fraudulent activity. Moreover, this helps in increasing employee's personal productivity in a positive manner.

source:http://ezinearticles.com/?Efficacy-of-Computer-Activity-Monitoring&id=4562936

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Keeping Teenage Girls Off Dangerous Websites

Like most teenage girls, Hannah Black and her friends love to check their Facebook pages and post photos.But one day, one of Black's friends was brutally attacked online."They were making up rumors about her, calling her a whore, saying she was ugly and she wasn't pretty and no one should like her and no one does like her," Black said."Here, this beautiful, smart, intelligent, well-rounded young girl being sexually harassed and taunted at every turn," said Black's father, Sam Black.
Besides being the father of a teenage girl, Black is an Internet safety professional.He knows first hand what dangers lurk online for teen girls."Body image, sexualization of women and girls, cyber bullying," he said. "All these things can play out on the Internet."Michele Borba, author of the "Big Book of Parenting Solutions," says while sites may post rules against bullying or harassing, not all teens follow them."There are a number of new sites that look like they're harmless, but are actually teaching our girls very, very vicious lifestyle changes," Borba said.

"Formspring is one of the new kinds of websites that looks like a social network that is popping up online for our daughters," Borba said. "It looks tame enough. But once they log on, what it actually encourages instead is to send vicious notes toward one another in an anonymous nature."Formspring.com said in an e-mail that they take safety and privacy seriously and have developed practices for blocking inappropriate content.The people behind Formspring say they're developing more tools for a safer online experience. For example, all questions sent to Formspring stay in a private inbox until a member responds.

But experts say social networking sites aren't the only types that raise concern.There are new online games where teens create and play highly-sexualized characters. "If you earn a certain amount of points in life, you can even buy yourself a sugar daddy," Borba said. "Totally unhealthy and you do not want your daughters in any part of it."Then there are the websites that promote anorexia and bulimia with photographs of frail and skinny models and step-by-step "tutorials."

"Specific directions on how to purge, how to purchase diet pills and it is doing damage," Borba said. "Stanford University found that 96 percent of girls who are anorexic learned a lot of their eating habits on those sites."So how can parents keep kids off potentially dangerous websites? They should invest in parental control software and monitor their teen's online history.They can also do Google searches on their kid's full name to see if anything comes up.A walk by to see if they abruptly stop as they're online is also a good idea.Finally, they should take the time to get Internet savvy. It could make all the difference in their daughter's life.

"You need to step up to the plate," Borba said. "You need to monitor because we're raising our children in a tough world."

source:http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/national_world&id=8000536

Monday, March 7, 2011

When Playground Behavior Enters The Virtual World

A 16-year-old and another girl have a dispute over a boy.Pre-MySpace, maybe one girl would write the other's name on the boys' bathroom wall, with a promise of a good time, and a phone number. Now, though, a Putnam Valley teenager is charged with second-degree criminal impersonation, a misdemeanor, accused of creating a MySpace.com account using the other girl's name and photos.

Fake profiles are de riguer in social networking sites like MySpace, where users can chat, make friends, send messages and vent about others, and try out new personas. The difference in Putnam Valley is apparently the part about pretending to be someone else -someone who happens to exist. The girl's mother said her daughter didn't think she had done anything wrong. "We're talking about a straight-A student," she said.

Is cyberbullying different than old-fashioned acts on the playground or school bus? Do existing laws need to be upgraded to include bullying with assistance of fill-in-the-blank technology (MySpace, Facebook and text-messaging today, who-knows-what tomorrow)? Do we need new laws to handle cyber-aggression? And what is the appropriate punishment for, say, an 8-year-old who engages in name-calling in the Webkinz.com chats as opposed to a 16-year-old who posts private information about another teen on a social-networking site? What if the bully is an adult who cyber-teases a child? And where on Earth is the line drawn between prohibited conduct online and protected speech?

These are questions school districts, state legislatures and Congress are grappling with in the cyber age. In New York, legislation is being developed, notably bills that seek to define the crime of "cyberbullying," spelling out the particular elements and charges. This week's misdemeanor charges out of Putnam Valley put all on notice that law enforcement takes bullying - by any means - seriously. Schools, law enforcement and legislators need to continue sending clear messages that threatening and harassing behavior will bring consequences.

source:http://www.lohud.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008802230312

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Children Safety Online - Internet Safety Tips For Kids

Children Safety Online is threatened from different angles, but with my Internet Safety Tips for kids you can guarantee them a safe web surfing. Internet is full of websites with inappropriate content for the eyes of our innocent kids. And they are easy victims to sexual predators and pedophiles while chatting online. But you are only a few steps away to be absolutely carefree while your kids are surfing the web. Just follow these tips.
Tip 1 - Restrict their online access
To make sure that your children only see what is appropriate for them, you have to restrict their online access. With a filtering software you can decide, which content your web browser will show and which not. You can block specific URL's or web pages that contain certain keywords or phrases in general.

Tip 2 - Monitor their Internet activities
A monitoring software gives you direct access to all of your kid's online activities. Captured screen shots allow you to get log in detail for their email and social network account. They record every single word your children exchange in chat and instant messaging as well.

Tip 3 - Get a Parental Internet Control Software
With this software you get all the features to follow Tip 1 and Tip 2. A Parental Internet Control Software allows you to watch over your children's shoulder at every time and as soon as you see something suspicious or dangerous, you can react immediately, search the discussion and protect your kids from further damage.

If you want more detailed information about Children Safety Online, read this article too. You will find other links there to information about Parental Internet Control Software as well as a complete Parental Control Software Review and a Review about the best product on the market.

That children surf the web a few hours a day is nothing unusual. But did you ever think about what they are doing exactly, which web sites they visit and to whom they are chatting to? We want to give our children all the liberty they can afford, but for all of its virtues, Internet is a dangerous playground for our youngster.

Did you know, that 12%, (4.2 million...) of all websites are pornographic websites? Or did you know, that 1 out of 5 children between 11 and 17 years of age in the US are sexually harassed at least once while chatting online? I was shocked when I read this information! I started to research about Internet threats, the possibilities to protect children online and the different existing Parental Internet Control Softwares.

Now I would like to help other parents to protect their children too. You can find several short articles about the topic by visiting safe websurfing for kids. Check it out and learn how to protect your children while they are surfing the web.

source:http://ezinearticles.com/?Children-Safety-Online---Internet-Safety-Tips-For-Kids&id=2485801

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Monitoring Software For Parents and Families

As a parent I am always acutely aware of my actions towards my teenagers. Getting in the way of their self autonomy and self confidence can arrest their selfhood. I know my kids need direction, but knowing when to act and when to let them stand on their own is often a dilemma. I have found using a monitoring software can greatly increase your control over the safety of your children on the internet.Clearly not allowing your kids to use the internet is not a good thing to do, because despite the dangers, the internet is an exceptional learning tool. Dis advantaging your children by removing their computer is obviously a mistake. To gain the protection and peace of mind for me and my wife, we found the most interesting solution is a monitoring software.
This type of software can be installed on your childs computer and with a simple keyboard shortcut that you have to remember, you can make it invisible and then re appear again for settings or editing. You can also have logs sent remotely so you get real time monitoring while you are at work. It only takes a second to look at the most recent log to find out which website they are visiting and what they are doing and who they are talking to. This type of close monitoring is very useful and we will continue to do this until she is old enough to make her decisions online for herself without getting into trouble.

source:http://ezinearticles.com/?Monitoring-Software-For-Parents-and-Families&id=4134893

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Keeping Kids Safe From Online Internet Dangers

The internet can be a valuable resource for children. They can use it to do research for school, to play interactive games, and to communicate with their friends and teachers. With one mouse click a window of information is at their disposal. Just how safe is the internet for kids? There is a down side to this multitude of online information. One could identify it as internet dangers. The web is a wide open forum for free expression. There is online content that children have access to most any parent would agree is inappropriate. Pornography and violent content are just to name a few of the hazards children can be exposed to online.

Any child with unrestricted Internet access can view adult pornographic images. Either intentionally or unintentionally, any computer literate child can view free teaser images posted by Internet "pornopreneurs". These are pictures posted on websites designed to solicit new subscribers. They could easily stumble across sites containing images from Playboy as well as porn prosecutable as obscenity. There are various ways that this can happen unintentionally. Through misdirected searches, a child can key in his or her favorite search terms and porn sites pop up along with the sites that were searched for. Innocent word searches such as "boy" or "toys" on popular search engines can lead a child to numerous inappropriate sites. Your child can type in legos, with one missed keystroke "leg" is entered and is directed to sites focused on legs- some of which contain porn. According to a recent study in England, 26 popular children's' characters such as My Little Pony and Action Men revealed thousands of links to porn sites .

There are many forms of violent and hateful content all over the internet. Hate promoters use the internet to look for vulnerable youth to attract to their community. There are sites which contribute to an online culture where cruelty to others is considered acceptable. Some impressionable kids move from sites where kids are mocked for their personal appearance to sites where minorities are attacked. The hate promoters may use misleading tactics by offering harmless activities, crafts, or links to other respected kids sites. For example, martinlutherking.org is a site which would appear to be a tribute to the civil rights leader but in fact is a hate site derived from a white supremacy organization.

Parents do their best to protect their children - that should include protecting them from internet dangers. There are some effective ways of protecting children from inappropriate content on the internet. Keep the lines of communication open with your kids - ask them to show you where they go online and what they like. Establish clear guidelines of what they can do on the internet. It's a good practice to keep connected computers in a highly visible area especially for kids under 10. Investigate online protection tools such as filtering software.

source:http://ezinearticles.com/?Keeping-Kids-Safe-From-Online-Internet-Dangers&id=4576741