What is Chatroulette, and why should you care?

A new website called 'Chatroulette' is fast becoming popular amongst teenagers and young adults.

The site is based on a simple concept, and the name is a big clue.

It works literally like roulette.  The user connects their webcam, logs on, starts a "game" and is instantly connected to another person.  The site displays the image from their webcam, the image from your own webcam, and a "chat" room on the right-hand side.  The person you are connected to could be anybody, of any age or any sex, from anywhere in the world.  

US Study: Young people want increased privacy

A US study by researchers at UC Berkeley and the University of Pennsylvania suggests that, contrary to popular opinion, young adults are concerned about online privacy and have similar views about social networking to those of their elders.

Safety Tips for Google Buzz

Google's fledgling Social Networking effort, Google Buzz, launched in February 2010 and immediately caused a storm of controversy over its privacy and safety implications.  

Bloggers and tech writers worried about the 'opt-out' nature of the service (which meant that all Google Mail users were instantly members, whether they liked it or not), the lack of control over personal information such as photographs and friend lists, and the geolocation features (which made it possible to disclose your exact location from your mobile phone).  

Teens Not Interested in ‘Blogging’ or ‘Tweeting’, Prefer Facebook

A study published this week by US organisation Pew Internet reveals the surprising conclusion that, whilst teens spend a long time on Facebook viewing status updates and photographs, they are far less likely to write a blog or use Twitter.

‘1 in 4’ Children sent Pornography by E-Mail

According to research carried out by telephone provider TalkTalk and reported in the Telegraph today, one in four children have been sent inappropriate material, including pornography, by email.

Boys that watch porn online ‘more likely to harass girls’

According to a study by Australian researchers, boys who are exposed to pornography at a young age are more inclined to believe there is nothing wrong with harassing a girl for sex.

The study by the Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society (which collected data from 8 countries) also suggests that boys exposed to porn are more likely to indulge in casual sex – and less likely to form successful relationships as adults.

 

US Children Spend “11 Hours a Day” on Entertainment Media

According to a new study from US organisation The Kaiser Family Foundation, reported on cnet, there has been a ‘dramatic’ rise in the amount of time 8-18 year olds spend using ‘entertainment media’ each day. 

Children Search The Internet for "YouTube, Facebook and Sex"

In recent research published by software company Norton, and discussed on the consumer website Which?, it is revealed that young people are actively searching for "sex" and "porn" online. 

Six-year-olds Illegally Download US TV Shows

According to a survey commissioned by New Media Age Magazine, children as young as six are using the internet to illegally download or stream US TV shows before they are aired in the UK.

Popular US TV shows such as Glee, Heroes, Lost, House and The Simpsons can easily be downloaded shortly after they air in the US.  It is often several weeks before the same episodes air on UK TV channels.

Parents - Is Your Child a “Space Monkey” ?

Sky News reports today on a frightening new trend amongst children and young people in the UK. 
The craze, nicknamed ‘Space Monkey’ and originating in the US and France, involves young people strangling themselves (or their friends) in order to achieve a ‘high’ when the stranglehold is released. 

Social Networking sites to launch "Panic Button"

A report in today's Telegraph suggests that an end is nigh to the ongoing disagreement between Internet Safety organisations and Social Networking sites on the use of so-called "Panic Buttons". 

Earlier this month, the social networking site Bebo agreed to place a "Panic Button" on it's website.  The button, created in association with the UK's Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP), allows children to quickly and easily report offensive, obscene and other inappropriate material.  At the time, other (larger) social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace refused to adopt the scheme, claiming that they had sufficient mechanisms in place to protect their young users in the first instance.

MSN Messenger: Most common method of "CyberBullying"?

In a recent report by the charity BeatBullying, MSN Messenger (recently renamed "Windows Live Messenger") was revealed as the most common conduit for "Cyber Bullies" on the internet.  MSN Messenger is a type of software classified as "Instant Messaging" software whereby, as the name suggests, short messages can be exchanged instantly between users. 

MSN Messenger is a very common piece of software, as it comes pre-installed on all new Windows computers and is therefore instantly available for use.  In addition, it can also be found on some games consoles (such as Microsoft's Xbox 360) and modern mobile phones.

Tips for Protecting Children Online - Part 2

We at Spysure recognise that our monitoring software is just one piece in the puzzle of protecting children online. In the same way that many foods and dietary supplements are useful for weight loss as part of a balanced diet, Spysure is suitable for protecting children as part of a balanced parental strategy.

Today we'd like to offer some more specific technical advice about how certain sites can be configured to make them safer for your children.  Using a combination of responsible parenting and computer-savvy, you can greatly reduce the risk of your children being exposed to unsuitable material on the internet.

Tips for Protecting Children Online - Part 1

We at Spysure recognise that our monitoring software is just one piece in the puzzle of protecting children online.  In the same way that many foods and dietary supplements are useful for weight loss as part of a balanced diet, Spysure is suitable for protecting children as part of a balanced parental strategy. 

So, over the next two days, we would like to offer some further advice on how to keep your children safe online.  Using a combination of responsible parenting and computer-savvy, you can greatly reduce the risk of your children being exposed to unsuitable material on the internet.