FAMILY CYBER ALERT PROVIDES PARENTS WITH VISIBILITY TO POSSIBLE CYBER-BULLYING INVOLVING THEIR CHILDREN
Sewickley, PA - 02/23/10 - An increasingly common news story is that of a child who has responded to an act of cyber-bullying in some very unfortunate and destructive way. School administrators and parents are increasingly concerned about how they can gain any measure of control over the more dangerous elements of the Internet usage and the threats that it poses to children. Notes Jesse Song, InfoWorks Technology president, “Family Cyber Alert helps parents monitor online interaction for cyber-bullying acts involving their children and provides that added measure of control that they are seeking.”.
"As the social lives of today’s youth play out on the web with online interactions, bullying has evolved and exploded in the form of cyber-bullying. Cyber-bullying is more prevalent and dangerous, given the nature of the Internet with its instantaneous access and spread of information, its 24/7 access, its lack of boundaries and its relative anonymity. Adds Song, “We must protect our kids by matching their technological savvy and access with rules and tools to monitor and guide what they are doing in their virtual social world.”
The recommendation by Internet safety experts has always been for parents to monitor their kids’ online activities, to know what sites they are using, who they are connecting with, what their online habits and interests are, and to create open dialogue about those activities. Family Cyber Alert has been repeatedly touted by such experts as a very helpful tool for the parents interested in monitoring these activities to whatever degree they feel is helpful to them.
“One hundred percent of children are touched by bullying as a victim, perpetrator or bystander,” says Dr. Meline Kevorkian, author of the book, “101 Facts About Bullying: What Everyone Should Know”. “In a recent study, 77 percent of students said they have been bullied and 14 percent of those who have been bullied said they have experienced severe reactions to the abuse,” she says.
About Family Cyber Alert
Family Cyber Alert allows the parent to easily establish a level of online monitoring with which they are most comfortable, monitoring for safety while still providing for appropriate levels of privacy. Easy-to-understand online activity reports highlight general activity and identify those that may prompt closer inspection. Family Cyber Alert records and reports on websites visited, applications used, e-mail/chat/instant messaging communications, keystrokes, screen shots, including time and sequence of all activity. Parents can receive e-mail alerts when potentially unsafe online activities are identified, and then get more detail as needed. Additionally, websites and applications of concern can be blocked.
About InfoWorks Technology
InfoWorks Technology is based in Sewickley, Pennsylvania. More information on InfoWorks Technology and its industry-leading products can be found at www.itcompany.com.
For InfoWorks Technology, contact:
Diane Benson
dbenson@itcompany2.com
