Pandora’s Blog

I came across this “study” last week that basically tried to say there is an educational value to social networking. Bologna. Absolute hogwash.
Here is the article on the study – and my thoughts in red…
Study finds educational value to Facebook and MySpace
Also shows low-income students are just as tech-savvy as their counterparts in some ways [...]

There’s no question that the Internet has evolved into an incredibly important tool for everyone. But for teenagers and young users, it’s not a tool for ease and convenience; it is a necessary part of life. In many ways, it is life. From instant messaging to social networking on sites such as MySpace and Facebook, [...]

Let’s have a bit of fun and pick on MySpace today. No secret I am not a fan of social networking. Here are two more reasons why parents should not be fans either, and why they should be closely monitoring what their child does on MySpace…
For the first story my only reaction is: ridiculous. For [...]

PC Pandora warns parents to make sure they monitor their home computers while kids roam free on family machines all day long during summer months.
New York, NY (PRWEB) June 26, 2008 — Security of the home computer continues to be a hot and important issue for families. But one aspect of security that is frequently [...]

Even though this is a press release of sorts, it is nonetheless impressive… and from my home state. Still, despite these valiant efforts and large successes, the sickos are still out there and parents still need to be monitoring their child’s internet activity with software like PC Pandora.
Internet Crime Task Force Nets 60 Arrests
ALBANY—Law enforcement [...]

Not so lucky for these sickos. It’s everyone’s favorite blog post – the weekly online predator round-up. This week we feature three new dirty old bastards that are the reasons behind parents needing to closely monitor and be wary of who their children talk to online. Monitoring software like PC Pandora can help you keep [...]

I came across a news study that was recently released and made just a blip on the radar screen outside of the upstate New York area (where it came from). It’s one of those things where, yes, there is good info. But if you are in the loop, you know it already… well, you know [...]

A few weeks ago, the Working to Halt Online Abuse-Kids/Teens Division (WHOA-KTD) released the results of a survey conducted last year on Cyberbullying and Online Predators. Some great material in here. I am paraphrasing from their blog post on the subject, and have requested a formal document that I can post here and also share.
Here [...]

This is from Canada, and it doesn’t say if software was used – but the lesson here is that involved parenting works!!
Parents Monitoring Internet Use Leads To Man’s Arrest
June 18, 2008
CBC News — Vigilant parents were a key factor in the arrest of a man charged with luring a child over the internet, Alberta [...]

Thought I’d share some good news on behalf of three US States and their progress on keeping the Internet safe for their kids.

In Massachusetts, the House passed reforms to the current Sex Offender Laws that will better protect children from sex offenders through the enforcement of tougher sentences and enhanced tracking of online predators.
In Pennsylvania, [...]