Why Safekeeper? So parents have effective digital tools to help keep their kids safe online

Safekeeper is an important new digital tool for parents helping them supervise their children and teens Internet usage and keeping them safe online.

The Educational Cyberplayground informational website advocates strong parenting involvement when it comes to teaching kids Internet Safety Rules, saying:

"The bottom line is that your kids do NOT have a right to privacy when it comes to internet or computer use, and you as a parent have a right and a responsibility to see to it that they're not getting into anything they shouldn't be getting into.

If it's illegal offline, it's illegal on the Web.

Children from 0 - 16 are entitled to exactly as much privacy as they can safely handle. In the case of the Internet, that means none. Children should be told up front that their communications will be monitored on an ongoing basis. This is a condition of their use of the Internet. If they don't like it, they can find something else to do with their time.

Parents need to know where their children are, who they are hanging out with at all times. The internet is the same as mall or anwhere else on earth. Parents are allowed to know where their child is on the internet and what they are doing there. And it's pretty easy to keep them in line, because the alternative for them is to not be permitted to use your machine -- end of story.

Too many parents are afraid to take control of their child’s computer. They’re afraid of their kids. They somehow think because technology is involved, they’re no longer the parent. You’re the parent. If you don’t like it, unplug the computer. If they don’t follow your rules, no Internet at all. If you’re not the parent and if you’re not going to step in, no Web site on earth is going to be able to help your child be safe."

Safekeeper helps parents become digital parents by providing software designed to protect your kids online. Safekeeper uses smart filters to make sure your kids surf the Internet safely and monitors usage which you can later view to see exactly what they do, where they go...as well as all IM and chat room chatting.

Safekeeper helps parents to prevent their kids from illegal downloading. And much more.

Go to mysafekeeper.com to learn more and download your free 14-day trial.

Seven In 10 Tweens Surf Web At Home

Children between the ages of 8 and 11 are almost as likely to surf as watch television, according to a recent report by market research company Youth Trends. Youth Trends reported that 81% of 8-to-11-year-olds have a computer at home -- just slightly less than the 95% that have a TV at home. The vast majority of that group (87%) also access the Web from home.

Mediapost.com further reports:

Overall, about 70% of children between the ages of 8 and 11 go online from home, according to Youth Trends. That figure appears to be similar to an estimate by research company eMarketer, which reported in October that 67% of U.S. children ages 8-11 are online.

Youth Trends reported that 60% of the tweens with Web access from home go online at least once a day. An additional 33% said they go online at least once a week.

What do they do online?

* More than one in three (37%) said they have used instant messaging in the last month
* 35% have played games
* 31% have visited sites geared toward youngsters
* 30% sent an e-greeting card
* 23% posted photos
* 18% watched music or video clips.

Do you know what your kids are doing online? With whom they are IMing and chatting? What they accidently are seeing when they surf online? Do you have proper PC protection to ensure proper digital parenting rules online for your kids?

Safekeeper helps protect your kids online, using smart filters to make sure your kids surf the Internet safely and monitors usage which you can later view to see exactly what they do, where they go...as well as all IM and chat room chatting.

Cyber Communities Are Huge With Teens; Safekeeper Monitors - And Blocks - Them

Cyber communities and other social networking sites and IM tools are huge with teens.

Whenever parents hear something about the popular MySpace or Xanga sites on the Internet, odds are it’s bad news. And yes, teens are at risk online. Safekeeper helps parents become "digital parents" by putting parent-approved Internet rules, controls, monitors and blocking securely in effect.

The Center for Parent/Youth Understanding explores the role the Internet plays in teens’ lives and the role parents can play in protecting them, seeking to "demystify the whole process of these online social communities.” The Center estimates at least 50 percent of teens go on these sites, and among those teens users, about 60 percent end up getting accounts on places such as MySpace and Xanga.

Xanga profiles helping teens live "double lives". Child predators communicating and luring underage girls online so they can meet in real time. Cyber bullies, porn images, adult sexual advertising or offensive text postings on teens' MySpace sites.

Then there are real life Internet stories like Mark Foley.

It’s enough to make parents pull the plug on their home computer.

But Ken Mueller, director of media resources at the Center for Parent/Youth Understanding, says that may be an extreme reaction.

Is the Internet is safe? No, Mueller says, parents must be vigilant. The Internet is considered by many people a necessary part of life these days. “We want parents to understand their kids’ culture,” says Mueller, who has three children of his own, ages 17, 14 and 11, and he knows it can be tough to monitor kids’ activities while letting them gain independence.

“We can’t be paranoid. You want to trust your kids,” he says. “But that doesn’t mean not knowing what’s going on in their lives. If you have a teen and he wants to go out on Friday night, the typical parent wants to know, ‘Where are you going, who are you going with, when will you be home?’ And if it’s a friend you don’t know, you want to meet them first and get to know them better.”

It shouldn't be any different when a teen goes on the Internet.

With Safekeeper, you can monitor Internet usage -- including transcript reports from your teens' IM and chat room usage. Even Yahoo's new IM-within-email tool. Parents control web access, customizing which sites are approved and which are not. And Safekeeper helps protect your kids from child predators through Family Watchdog.

Go to mySafekeeper.com today and download a free trial for your PC and make the Internet safer for your family.

FT.com's Personal Tech Guru "Impressed" with Safekeeper to Keep Kids Safe Online

Paul Taylor readily admits to being a gadget and gizmo freak and "a bit of a geek". He also happens to be the personal technology columnist for London's Financial Times.

His weekly column focuses on new developments in software, hardware and IT services that make it easier (or more fun) for people. And, when it comes to computers, more safe, too.

Over the weekend, Paul reviewed several new products designed to improve web usage for FT's weekend "Pursuits" section. One of his recommended new products designed for parents to help protect their children from online hazards? Safekeeper.

In his article, he states:

Wouldn't it be great if children followed their parents' guidance when it comes to PC use (or anything else). They could then avoid inappropriate content and be able to access the tremendous resources of the internet in complete safety. And pigs would fly. Unfortunately, the world isn't perfect and few of us have enough time to sit down next to our children and oversee their online activities full-time.

In case you are wondering whether any of this is necessary, consider this. According to US-based research, one in seven teenagers has met, face-to-face, total strangers they met online, 54 per cent have communicated with a stranger online, and 47 per cent have received pornographic e-mail.

But there are steps concerned parents can take to help protect their offspring online - including, of course, educating their children about the risks...Parental control software can help.

In my research, I came across about a dozen products designed to filter content and provide a degree of parental control. I have also been impressed by newer products such as SafeKeeper Plus which features a suite of parental controls including content filters, an internet chat monitoring tool, and (in the US) the ability to track sexual predators. It combines these features with standard internet security software including a firewall, anti-virus and anti-spyware.

With Safekeeper, your children can avoid inappropriate content and be able to access the tremendous resources of the internet in complete safety.

'Porn' worm sent to 50,000 after Google blunder

As more and more Americans get onto the Internet through high-speed broadband connections, viral videos have surged in popularity for their crazy-fun content, driving traffic to places like YouTube and Google Video.

Apparently Google took the term "viral video" too literally on Tuesday.

According to Silicon.com,

Google on Tuesday inadvertently sent the Kama Sutra mass email worm to 50,000 subscribers of a Google Video email group.

In a note on its website apologising for the incident, Google said: "Some of these posts may have contained a virus called W32/Kapser.A@mm - a mass-mailing worm."

W32/Kapser.A is better known as the Kama Sutra worm. Some antivirus companies raised an alarm about the threat in February but it ultimately shrivelled. Kama Sutra was designed to overwrite files on infected computers on a specific date. Fortunately, the worm, which spread under the guise of pornographic content, caused virtually "no damage", according to Google assessments.

Something to think about: a worm being emailed under "the guise of pornographic content". Does your teen search Google Video or YouTube content for porn? Or receive porn email? Is your computer vulnerable to virus and worm attacks from disguised porn your teen downloads on your home computer?

With Safekeeper, you can keep your teen away from porn and prevent computer damage through its award-winning anti-virus, anti-spyware and firewall protection software.

Yahoo to offer instant messaging inside e-mail

Instant messaging is more popular with teens than email...and the major web email services are responding to the demand. Making IM easier also makes it more challenging for parents to know who their teens are chatting with online.

Safekeeper can help.

Reuter's reports Yahoo! is making it easier to choose between e-mail and instant-messaging tools by bringing the two together in its popular free Yahoo Mail program, an executive said on Thursday.

Yahoo Mail, which counts 250 million active monthly users, plans in coming months to incorporate the Yahoo Messenger instant-messaging program inside the e-mail service, Yahoo executive Brad Garlinghouse said.

Consumers will be able to run the two programs in one Web browser. There is no need to download Yahoo Messenger software, a complication for users who are not technically inclined.

Yahoo's melding of e-mail and instant messaging follows the lead of rival Google Inc., which merged its Google Talk instant-message chat service with its Gmail e-mail program. But Yahoo's audience is roughly 10 times larger than Google's base of e-mail users, according to industry data

Internet predators lurk hidden in the community

A sexual predator doesn't need a crowbar or open window to get into your child's room. To them, a computer is even better.

Child predators lurk hidden in the community...and love the anonymity of the Internet. Preventing them from harming children is a top priority for families and protection advocates everywhere.

Even so, child predators sometimes get discovered in places we trust to be safe. In Detroit, Michigan's Attorney General Mike Cox yesterday announced the arrest of public school teacher Ryan Thomas Fawkes, 31, of Livonia, on charges related to soliciting a minor over the Internet and disseminating lewd materials to a minor.

Fawkes, a 7th grade science teacher at the Columbus Middle School located on the east side of Detroit and head coach of the Plymouth-Canton Hockey Association’s Midget-level travel team, was arrested this morning by Attorney General Investigators and officers from the Livonia Police Department as he was leaving his home. "It is particularly disturbing when those who are placed in positions of trust are accused of committing sex crimes against children," Cox stated. "Parents should never have to fear for the safety of their children in the classroom or when participating in youth sports."

On multiple occasions between October 3 and October 26, 2006, Fawkes allegedly communicated on-line in a chat room with an undercover agent posing as a 13-year-old boy. During the course of these communications, Fawkes solicited the undercover agent for online sexual activity, sending lewd Webcam video images of himself, as well as other adult pornographic images, to the agent.

Parents are encouraged to check their children's "buddy lists" for the screen names. Help kids avoid IM and chat room misconduct.

With Safekeeper, you can know who your teen is chatting with through IMs and chat rooms by receiving real-text reports and transcript. Safekeeper monitors your teen's computer activity...including what they are saying, what they are receiving and downloading, and who they are IMing.

Safekeeper helps keep your kids safe.

Michigan State Police information here.

Child Online safety tips here.

Recommendations if you suspect your child has been sexual assaulted by a predator, click here.

"Dateline" helps nab Texas Prosecutor who was an Online Predator

Online Predators never seem to learn...which is why Safekeeper is so essential to help keep your kids safe.

Over last weekend, a prosecutor killed himself as police tried to serve him with an arrest warrant alleging he solicited sex with a minor, authorities said.

Louis "Bill" Conradt Jr., 56, chief felony assistant district attorney for nearby Rockwall County and former district attorney in Kaufman County, died Sunday.

Police forced their way into Conradt's Terrell home after hearing a gunshot when he refused to answer the door, a police spokesman said. The officers found Conradt with a self-inflicted gunshot wound and he later died at a hospital in Dallas, about 30 miles west of Terrell.

Police in the town of Murphy, in nearby Collin County, said Conradt solicited sex from a decoy posing online as a 13-year-old, said Murphy Police Sgt. Snow Robertson.

NBC News confirmed the sting operation involved "Dateline" and its "To Catch A Predator" series and issued the following statement:

NBC News' "Dateline" was in Texas reporting on its "To Catch A Predator" series in conjunction with online watchdog group Perverted Justice. In the midst of that effort, Rockwall County Assistant District Attorney Louis W. Conradt Jr. contacted a decoy from Perverted Justice who was posing as a 13-year-old boy. Local authorities launched an investigation into Conradt's online communications and went to his home with an arrest warrant. In the course of that investigation, Conradt committed suicide. There was no contact whatsoever between Conradt and "Dateline" at any point in the investigation.

Police said Conradt had not gone to the house but they believed he would.

Help keep your kids from online predators by using Safekeeper. Safekeeper protects your family and your children.

Man ordered to wear "sex offender" T-shirt

Keeping kids safe is a concern for every family. Communities sometimes get creative when it tries to protect kids from registered sex offenders.

According to a Reuters news report, a Delaware judge on Friday ordered a man who twice exposed himself to a 10-year-old girl at his workplace to wear a T-shirt with the words: "I am a registered sex offender" in bold letters, a prosecutor said.

It makes you wonder how'd you respond if you saw someone in your grocery store wearing that t-shirt. Or if you are in line to go see "Borat"...would you think it's a joke or take it seriously?

It sounds like something Borat would actually do...just to test the reaction.

Russell Teeter, 69, who pleaded guilty to two counts of indecent exposure, also was sentenced to 60 days in jail by Superior Court Judge Jan Jurden in Wilmington.

Deputy Attorney General Donald Roberts said he requested the unusual T-shirt punishment because he was concerned about Teeter exposing himself to children at the gardening business he runs with his wife.

"This is a unique way to let his customers know that he is a sex offender," Roberts told Reuters.

Roberts said Teeter had at least 10 prior convictions dating back to 1976 for exposing himself to children and had been diagnosed as a compulsive exhibitionist.

Teeter, who has 30 days to appeal the sentence, will have to wear the T-shirt at work for 22 months after he gets out of jail.

If you want to be pro-active to help protect your kids, get informed by using Safekeeper -- a software program for the PC that helps keep kids safe, offering an easy way to see photos and court reports about your community's registered sex offenders.

Know who they are before getting surprised by someone wearing a court-ordered t-shirt.

US Teens Prefer IM over Email

A new Parks Associates study finds that U.S. teenagers now prefer instant messaging to email. Less than one-fifth of those surveyed between the ages of 13-17 use email as their primary method of communication with friends, compared to almost 40 percent of adults aged 25-54.

As seen in the chart above, those ages 24 or younger prefer instant messenger to communicate with friends, while those 25 and over greatly prefer email.

Do you know who your teen is chatting with through IM? With Safekeeper, you can monitor your teens computer IMing...including what they are saying, what they are receiving and downloading, and who they are IMing.