This morning on the Today Show we discussed a new product that has been released by Symantec called OnlineFamily.Norton, which basically allows parents to know what their kids are up to when the kids are surfing the Internet.
What I like about OnlineFamily.Norton is that parents can supervise and communicate with their kids about their internet access. Once the software is installed on the kids PC, the number of internet hours accessed in a month, the sites that are visited, the searches that are made and more, can all be set by the parent from their own PC. Monitoring of the access of their kids machine can also be viewed through the parents computer and this can be done wherever that PCis used, anywhere in the world!
When I was growing up there was no Internet or email and therefore the kinds of risks that are available online were not evident. Sure there were predators out there in the real world, and bullies, too, but they were not prevalent in my life, or most peoples. These days this is not the case. A predator, or a bully, or some unseemly sight that should no child should ever see are now only a few keystrokes away from possibly doing something hurtful to your kids.
There are many programs out there at the moment that can help parents keep their kids safe when they are surfing the net. This new one from Symantec is great. It allows parents to supervise their kids while they are online, and helps them to take an active interest in what they are doing while they are in cyberspace.
These types of issues are bound to cause friction – especially amongst the teenage set – but that is the way of the world these days. Parents need to supervise their kids when they are online and kids need to be supervised when there.
Let me know any questions you have from the segment or about this topic. I look forward to your comments.