As we roll into this holiday season please take a moment and think about the children who are orphans and/or foster children. These children are in a state of flux. Those of us who haven’t experienced being a child in the house of a foster parent can only speculate on the mental gymnastics required to project calm by the child …
Necessity – Invest wisely on Black Friday
On this Black Friday, the Friday where we have 1 in 6 food-insecure, let us get our collective acts together and spend some of that Retail Therapy energy on hunger in America.
Safer Internet Day 2012
Safer Internet Day 2012 (SID2012) serves as great opportunity to remind ourselves of the need to exercise a bit of caution as we traverse the wired side of life. What impresses me the most is the multi-lingual, multi-topic approach taken to spread the message of how to stay safe online.
Mobile – Daily risks mitigated
If you don’t maintain the health of your device then you should expect that your device will at some point in the future become compromised in some way, shape or form.
What type of compromises may occur? How often? What can you do?
Let’s answer these in order…
Game On! Eight tips to stay safe while playing online games
Do you or your children participate in online gaming, using your PC, smart phone or game box? Then you need to make sure you understand what’s going on, especially behind the curtain, when you configure your “game” settings. Here are eight online security tips to keep you safe and secure.
Location, Location, Location
Location based services are here to stay, have great viability and absolutely increase the interaction between individuals and merchants, as well as serve to identify individuals with similar interest. Know that well intentioned services have a positive side, but also may also be used to your detriment. If you are satisfied with the answers to the questions in today’s post, then make your decision to share or not to share.
Cyber Security Awareness: Are you?
Today marks the start of National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) in the United States. If you’re reading this piece you are on a social network and have a modicum of interest in your online security. Throughout the month (as I have for the past few years) I will be publishing snack size tips that you may wish to share (family, friends, colleagues, or whomever) so that all have a leg-up on keeping their online activities enjoyable, but also safe and secure.
Trust: Bad things can happen to good children (online safety)
In David Schwimmer’s TRUST, bad things happen to Annie, a good child. She is by all appearances a typical teenager – totally wired, online and available, 24/7/365. In the physical world, parents see with whom their child interacts. As the parents witness this interaction they are able to help guide and influence their child’s choices. The number one rule for every family: “The child must not engage in any personal meetings with an individual whom they have only met online without explicit parental permission.”
Safer Internet Day 2011 – It’s more than a game, its your life
Today, February 8, 2011 is Safer Internet Day. It’s more than a game, its your life. One can’t over emphasize how important it is to pay attention when you and your family are online. The internet is integral to our daily lives. Online is where we live and we need to stay safe online.
Here are a eleven tips to achieve that goal:
Every day is worth living
If we are able to collectively work together, we can save a life, we can save many lives and in doing so we will demonstrate to the children, every day is worth living.
How does my child access the internet? With whom is my child engaging?
A question which every parent should be asking themselves, “How does my child access the internet?” “With whom is my child engaging?” The array of answers may startle you. So make no assumptions. Why does it matter? Knowing how your child accesses the internet and with whom they are engaging are the first steps in crafting an online safety plan for your child. I have said it before and will repeat, our family is our responsibility.
BackPack Programs
In the United States there are programs within the public school systems to assist children with reduced resources to be able to have a light meal cum snack before school and a reduced price lunch during school. When the child goes home, they eat what is placed on the table which if they are fortunate their parent/guardian will prepare, but as often as not, they themselves must prepare. What if there isn’t any food at home? The child goes hungry? Not if there is a Backpack Program.
Our Family Is Our Responsibility
I recently spoke at an event in Seattle on the security aspects of Social Media, both from the business and personal perspective. One question which I fielded surrounded whether or not there is risk to children via the various social media networks (i.e., Facebook) or should one accept that if someone really wants to hurt my family they don’t need …
Jon Carmichael – Age 13
Jon Carmichael was a 13-year-old eighth grade student from Joshua, Texas who took his own life in late March 2010. Jon hung himself in his parents barn. He had been bullied at school.
Kimberly Linczeski – Age 12
Kimberly Linczeski was a 12-year-old sixth grader who attended Ontonagon Area Junior-Senior High School in Ontonagon village, Michigan. She took her own life on 3 March 2010.
Montana Lance – Age 9
Montana Lance was a nine-year old fourth grader when he took his life in the nurses station restroom at Stewart Creek elementary school in The Colony, Texas in January 2010.
Ernest Fuller – Age 12
Ernest Fuller was a 12-year-old sixth grader who attended Dunbar Middle School in Lynchburg, Virginia. He took his own life in January 2010.
Phoebe Prince – Age 15
Phoebe Prince was a 15-year-old student at South Hadley High School, located in South Hadley, Massachusetts. Phoebe was bullied over a period of six months. She took her own life on 14 January 2010. The District Attorney brought criminal charges against six teens, in connection with Phoebe’s death. The District Attorney described Phoebe’s last day, “It appears Phoebe’s death followed a …