RSS Great Stuff from Net Family News

  • Digital youth: Honor ALL their rights April 10, 2019
    This is a pivotal year for children’s online safety and human rights. One important reason is the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child’s call for public comments to help it develop the first General Comment on the digital part of fulfilling children’s human rights. Those rights are extensive. There are 54 articles in […]
    Anne
  • The TikTok sensation March 16, 2019
    This is not a review of TikTok. You can find many reviews, both credible and not so much, with a quick Web search. This post offers a bit of context on the app, its parent company and where social media’s headed – for bigger-picture parenting. (BTW, if your child is a big fan of TikTok, […]
    Anne
  • The Internet’s changing. Internet safety needs to too. March 8, 2019
    Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg just announced a sea change for Facebook, one that “will mean taking positions on important issues concerning the future of the internet,” he wrote. I think he’s right, and not just because Facebook is the Internet in some countries or because its products have affected elections and the public order (or […]
    Anne
  • Momo. Again. March 2, 2019
    I hardly need to weigh in because I already did – in depth, last summer, at the peak of the last Momo wave. But I will only to highlight the best thinking I’ve seen this go round and add 4 points – lessons from this – to consider when the next wave hits (because this […]
    Anne
  • Safer Internet Day 2019: Risk vs harm, online & offline February 6, 2019
    What better way to mark Safer Internet Day than with clarity on the difference between risk and harm? Because, where online safety’s concerned, the two words have been used interchangeably – inaccurately – for years. It was EU Kids Online, after surveys of more than 25,000 9-16 year-olds across Europe, that first made the distinction, […]
    Anne
  • Facebook’s ‘Oversight Board’ & Internet safety’s next big step January 30, 2019
    This could almost be a sidebar to what I wrote earlier this month about the new middle layer of user care that’s organically developing for the new conditions of today’s media environment – a layer of care that’s independent of government and corporations and lies between “the cloud” and long-established care on the ground. But […]
    Anne
  • Wellbeing, digital or analog: A paper, a podcast January 17, 2019
    Confused about all that you’re hearing about the impacts of digital media and tech on young people? A just-published paper should clear that confusion up, reports Scientific American. Drawing from data on more than 350,000 teens, the paper, “show[s] persuasively that…technology use has a nearly negligible effect on adolescent psychological well-being.” Its authors, Oxford University […]
    Anne
  • Digital safety 2019: The new ‘middle layer’ of user care (Part 2) January 7, 2019
    Part 1 of this series was 2018 highlights. Now it’s time to shine light on some interesting ideas and developments that people have surfaced for a better Internet in 2019 and beyond. We’ll look at a new middle layer of user care that’s being discussed by some – and gradually being built out, little by […]
    Anne
  • Digital safety, wellbeing: 2018 highlights (Part 1) December 27, 2018
    This may not be the Internet safety look-back on 2018 you’d expect, what with all the news about data breaches, “fake news,” “tech addiction,” algorithmic bias, election manipulation, hate speech, etc., etc. Not a pretty picture. But it’s also not the whole picture. By definition, the news reports airline crashes, not safe landings. Even if […]
    Anne
  • Tweens are smart about smartphones: Study November 21, 2018
    Everything about this study is smart — the 10-14 year-old respondents (average age 11), what the authors are modeling for pediatricians and parents, and the tweens’ answers. For example, when asked what age kids should be given mobile phones, one answer was: “It’s not an age. I think it’s more of a maturity thing,” said […]
    Anne

RSS Great Stuff from Connect Safely

  • Podcast: Helping students — and ourselves — manage time spent on devices April 9, 2019
      ConnectSafely’s CEO Larry Magid and K-12 Education Director, Kerry Gallagher talk about how parents and educators can help students better manage the time they spend with their devices. But both Kerry and Larry admit that this is a challenge for adults, too, including themselves. Listen for tips and advice on how to work with […]
    Larry Magid
  • Why Facebook instituted its policy to ban support for white nationalism and white supremacy March 28, 2019
      Brittan Heller   ConnectSafely CEO and CBS News Technology Analyst, Larry Magid speaks with human rights expert  Brittan Heller on why Facebook instituted its new policy to ban support for white nationalism and white supremacy. Larry Magid Heller is Human Rights Adviser for ConnectSafely.org and an affiliate at Harvard’s Berkman Klein Center for Internet […]
    Larry Magid
  • Facebook strives to end age, gender and location discrimination March 20, 2019
    In response to litigation by the  National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA), the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Communication Workers of America (CWA) and other parties, Facebook is making changes to its ad policy to no longer discrimination based on age, gender or zip code. In a blog post, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg made the following […]
    Larry Magid
  • Vaccines, autism and the First Amendment March 14, 2019
    This issue presents a dilemma for Facebook. The company wants its service to be a place where people can express opinions but not a place for spreading false information. Sometimes the designation between truth and fiction is undeniable, like the existence of gravity.  But sometimes it’s a matter of opinion, even though it’s possible for […]
    Larry Magid
  • Video Highlights of U.S. Safer Internet Day 2019 March 7, 2019
    Larry Magid
  • Podcast: Safer Internet Day 2019 + Teachers & Social Media March 5, 2019
    ConnectSafely CEO Larry Magid and veteran educator Kerry Gallagher look back at Safer Internet Day 2019 and about how teachers can better use social media.
    Larry Magid
  • Online romance scam losses on the rise. How to protect yourself February 13, 2019
    by Larry Magid Just in time for Valentine’s Day,  the Federal Trade Commission published a post saying that in 2018, there were more than 21,000 reports “about romance scams with reported losses of $143 million,” up from  8,500 reports in 2015, with losses of $33 million. The data is based on complaints compiled by the FTC’s Consumer […]
    Larry Magid
  • Despite rare Seattle snow, families came & cameras rolled at U.S Safer Internet Day February 8, 2019
    Watch our highlight reel from SID 2019 by Larry Magid A rare Seattle snow storm forced Seattle Public Schools to cancel school on Safer Internet Day, Tuesday February 5th, so the 200 students slated to participate in the daytime event weren’t able to board the buses and attend. But that didn’t stop ConnectSafely and our […]
    Larry Magid
  • Google Password Checkup helps make sure you have secure and unique passwords February 7, 2019
    by Larry Magid Weak or compromised passwords are among the biggest threats to online security and privacy. Once cyber criminals get hold of your password, they can not only use it to break into your account but sell it to other criminals – often through the “dark web,” making you a sitting duck for multiple […]
    Larry Magid
  • Youth from around the world set 16 goals to commemorate 16 years of Safer Internet Day February 4, 2019
    16 Goals: Click on image to englage More at SmarterInternet,org.  Sign up for our mailing list. For the past several months, young people from 35 countries around the world have been articulating and voting on their goals for a smarter internet. And, ahead of Safer Internet Day 2019, we are releasing the top 16 goals — […]
    Larry Magid