What to do before bullying begins

Webnotes by: Theresa Payton, Fortalice, LLC. Content also featured on WBTV's "Protecting Your Cyberturf" segment featuring Kristen Miranda and Theresa Payton.

Parents want to know what they can do before bullying begins.

The studies are all over the place but they have 1 thing in common - chances are your kid will be bullied in some way in the digital world. It could be an inappropriate photo, a mean text, or a secret exposed that embarasses them.  Research suggests that as many as ⅓ of all kids will experience cyberbullying and between as many as 20% of students could be a cyberbully.  Many experts have talked about how to stop bullying but you have told us you want to do more.  

 Amanda Todd, a Canadian teen, recently posted a youtube video talking about the pain she had been put through by her digital tormentors and then took her own life.  Our hearts go out to her parents and loved ones as they deal with this horrific loss.  It has left many of you asking as a parent what can you do if your son or daughter becomes a victim of digital bullying.  Cyber expert, Theresa Payton, has some tips for parents that could block the bullying or help head off a situation before it gets out of control.

7 TIPS FOR PARENTS:

1.  Safe Zone:  Before your child has a digital social life, establish a safe zone.  Kids tell surveys they don’t immediately report issues online because they don’t want to be digitally grounded.  Promise them you will not ground them if they come to you immediately with an issue even if they caused it.  

2.  Warning Signs:  Obsessive checking of emails, texts, social media accounts.  Or the opposite, completely withdrawn.  Moody.  Spells of sleeping or being hyper.

3.  Monitoring:  Always have a trust but verify rule in place.  Tell your child you will be actively checking their accounts and follow through.  Don’t snoop because you will create mistrust and you need a healthy and open line of communication.

4.  Legal action:  Blackmail, stalking, threatening online does have some legal protections.  File a police report and then contact a lawyer.  

5.  Online action:  Often a bully will go away if you ignore them.  This is the best first step.  But if the harassment becomes relentless, involves physical harm, or mental duress, you have courses of action you can take with online companies.  Go to customer support and seek help.

6.  Get help:  Seek counseling.  Your child is not alone.  Often, they feel as if their life is over and by seeking out counseling they can work through the shame, self blame and embarrassment

7.  Get educated together:  Before their digital social life takes off, spend time together playing internet safety games.  It’s a great way to have fun together while reinforcing important lessons.  If you have a teen, NSTeens.org is a great place to watch videos and play games that talk about cyberbullying.  Another great resource is OnGuardOnline.gov.

WORD OF THE WEEK:

SURFACE.  This is the new Microsoft tablet that wants to take on the iPad and other tablets in the market.  Coming soon to a store near you.  It has a 10.6-inch screen and a pop-out kickstand.  Pricing starts at just under $500.  

Resources:

For step by step instructions on how to report bullying on Facebook:

http://www.stopcyberbullying.org/reportfbabuse/individual.html 

How to stop bullying via the smart phone or cellphone:

Call your cell phone provider and have them walk you through options to monitor or block posts.  You can also request a free cell phone number change.

Contact Customer Support at Social Media networks:

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/help/?page=223210624415505 

Twitter:  https://support.twitter.com/articles/15794-safety-abusive-users 

Pinterest:  https://support.pinterest.com/home 

Instagram:  http://help.instagram.com/customer/portal/articles/615900-tips-for-parents 

Google products such as YouTube, Google+ all have standard features while on the product:

• If you see abusive or inappropriate content, click the down-arrow to the right of the post or content and select report abuse. 
• To report a person specifically, there is also an option to “Report this Profile” .  Look on the left side of the person’s profile. 

For YouTube videos, there is extra help at:

http://support.google.com/youtube/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=126266 

Play internet safety games together as a family that cover cyberbullying:

www.NSTeens.org   

www.OnGuardOnline.gov 

After you call 911, apps to help keep you safe!

Webnotes by: Theresa Payton, Fortalice LLC. Content also featured on WBTV's "Protecting Your Cyberturf" segment featuring Kristen Miranda and Theresa Payton.

What to do after you call 911!  Or, if it’s not a 911 but you still need help.

In the event of a real emergency, nothing should replace calling 911 first.  But sometimes events don’t require 911 or you need assistance beyond 911 and now there’s lots of apps for that.  

When you are discussing a crime in progress or a life or death situation, always call 911 first.  But sometimes, you need help that’s not 911 worthy or sometimes after you call 911 you still need to get in touch with loved ones.  Well, if your smart phone is charged up, you have apps at your fingertips to help you navigate these emergencies.  Cyber expert, Theresa Payton, covers just a few of these amazing apps that could make a huge difference during an emergency or even avoiding an emergency.

Tips:

1.  Age Appropriate:  think about who you would need to connect with.  If it involves small children, think through whether or not they can respond to these apps in an event of an emergency.

2.  Practice Makes Perfect:  once you download these apps, try them out periodically so you and your family get used to them.

3.  Read Reviews:  Before buying these or other apps, read the user reviews to determine if these apps are right for you.

There are many apps out there but here are a few examples that you may find of interest:

MY AIRCOVER

My aircover is a Family Location Tracker.  This is more of a proactive tool to help ward off emergencies or to use in emergencies.  They have a free version of the app available for a limited time.  With this app you can proactively track and see the location of your loved ones.

You can send out and receive an Emergency Alert.  You can also set up “safe regions” and if loved ones enter / exit the region get an automated notification.  It even gives you “safe place” access such as the nearest hospital, fire department or police department.

GUARDLY

During an emergency, you can connect with loved ones quickly.  It also allows you to send photos to loved ones of the situation.  The app also includes a sound blasting siren to either scare an attacker or alert others in the area.  Roughly $1.99 and $19.99 for a monthly subscription.

MY FORCE

The app is free but there is a monthly subscription fee.  A quick tap on the app will automatically make a call for you when you sense danger or an emergency.  The app also offers a silent alarm that will start recording whatever the phone picks up and will dial 911 for you.  It will also alert any contacts you set up in advance.   

HOLLABACK

The Hollaback! app allows you to report inappropriate behavior.  You can text or send pictures to report incidents that will show up on a map. Reports go to local authorities and officials who will review whether or not there are hot spots for issues in their town.  It’s free but not available yet in all locations so check their map first before downloading.

WORD OF THE WEEK:  PARKING PANDA.

Headed to DC, Boston or San Fran?  Parking Panda will help you find and reserve parking.  They also offer discounts and you pre pay for your spot.  You can use the mobile app or reserve from your computer.  They are adding new cities every day so sign up to request your city and they’ll alert you when they have your home town on the map!

https://www.parkingpanda.com

LINKS TO APPS:

Parking Panda

MY AIRCOVER

Guardly

MyForce

Hollaback

Worried about privacy? Update your phone to iOS6!

Webnotes by: Theresa Payton, Fortalice LLC. Content also featured on WBTV's "Protecting Your Cyberturf" segment featuring Theresa Payton and Kristen Miranda

Move to the iOS 6 on that smart phone now...and you get a bonus 200 secret features.  

We have told you before that your smart phone, every model, tells important clues about you and often there wasn’t much you could do about it.  Well Apple heard your concerns loud and clear and they have made important changes to the new operating system.  

Cyber expert, Theresa Payton, reminds us all the time that we MUST update our operating systems and browsers frequently.  She says it is our best protection against the bad guys.  But she was also excited to hear that Apple has done some work focused on your privacy.  And, she’ll also tell us about some of the hidden fun features in iOS6 for the iPhone, iPad, and iTouch that you might not have known about.  

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE PRIVACY CHANGES:

1.  PRIVACY:  Apple has leaped ahead of other phones by giving YOU more control over your private and personal data 

a.  You get a better understnading of how apps share or look at your data

b.  You can get specific about “do not track”

Take 2 Steps in 10 minutes or less!

1.  go the new Privacy tab and choose which apps get access to your phone's location data, address book, calendar, personal reminders and Bluetooth.

2.  Limit Ad Tracking: enable this feature and you are letting mobile apps know “do not track”

2.  UDID no longer passed to vendors:  They still do “device identification” but they create a unique number for a vendor that is tied to your device.  They also create a different one for apps to use and for online ads.  It’s not perfect anonymity but offers another layer of protection between you and the outside world tracking you at the UDID!

SECRET FEATURES - CHECK THEM OUT!

-- Shh!  Don’t tell the kids but you can check their Browsing history easier!

Go to Safari, press for a few seconds on the “back button” to display history! 

-- No excuses!  Easy updates now available!  You don’t need your app store password anymore to update your apps!   

-- When you can’t take that phone call - you have options!. When a call comes that you cannot take, tap on the phone icon in the lower right hand corner.  You will see several options!

-- VIP list:  Are there a few people in your life that you absolutely cannot afford to miss their calls or messages?  Set up a VIP list and their emails, texts, and messages will glide by on your screen and will also have a star next to them.  VIP mail will go into a folder so you can check those first.

-- Worried about privacy so photo sharing on Facebook got you down?  No more!  You have a private photo sharing option.  Select a photo and tap the share button.  File it in a “photo stream” and then designate who you want to see it via email.  This photo stream will stay set up for you and them so you can post pictures to it as often as you’d like!

WORD OF THE WEEK:

BAZAART:  This is a great app that lets Pinterest users create an interactive catalog out of their pins.  This is great for bloggers, photographers, chefs, artists, designers - really anyone that wants to create an interactive catalog for friends, family, or clients!

More on iOS6:

http://www.apple.com/ios/ 

More on Bazaart:

http://www.bazaart.me 

Email Scam: Western Union 9/25

Teen are hiding their texts from their parents

Webnotes by: Theresa Payton, Fortalice, LLC. Content also covered on WBTV's Protecting Your Cyberturf segment featuring Theresa Payton and Kristen Miranda

We have talked to you before about setting ground rules for the teens in your life that have cell phones.  Rules such as “Digital is Forever”, “Don’t talk to strangers”, and  “Would your Grandmom be okay with that?” Many of you also like to check your kids’ cell phones and / or have worked with the cell phone companies to install monitoring plans.  Well guess what?  It looks like kids have found a way around that.  

There are several new apps on the market that allow you to hide texts and even phone calls.  Some are free or low cost and scary easy to use.  Some of the app names will give it away but others like, “Brightkite” or “Blacklist” might not be so obvious.  Cyber expert, Theresa Payton, explains what these apps do and what you can do about it at home.

The statistics of how teens get into trouble on their phones is astounding.  According to a Pew Internet study:

Almost 1 in 5 teens have used their cell phone to send sexually-suggestive images of themselves

Older teens are much more likely to send and receive “sexts”

3 KEY RULES FOR PARENTS:
1.  NO DIGITAL ZONE:  Have your teens turn in their devices before they head to bed.  They are more likely to get wrapped up in a texting session if they are alone in their room.

2.  CELL PHONE REVIEW:  Occasionally have your kids show you their phone and ask them to log into the apps that you aren’t sure what they are.  

3.  TALK, TALK, TALK:  The number one best rule to have is to talk to your kids!  Remind them that digital is forever and that they should not text inappropriate messages or photos - under any circumstances.

WORD OF THE WEEK:
BIOSwimmer:  This is a new security project underway to help the U.S. better protect its underwater vulnerabilities.  Using a technique called biomimetics, it will look somewhat like a tuna and the robot will be able to swim and maneuver like a tuna while using it’s own computer for navigation.  It will use the digital world to communicate back a security report back to its home base reporting any suspicious activities.

RESOURCES:

Pew Research Center Study:
http://www.pewinternet.org/Search.aspx?q=sexting


There are too many of these apps that hide texts or calls to list them all here.  
You can see these types of apps here:

https://play.google.com/store/search?q=hide+text+messages+and+calls+with+black+list&c=apps

Here's a short list that you may want to look for on your kids’ phones are:

• HMT (Hide my text) let's you change the themes and use decoy icons.  
• 420 Hide Text/Call Log: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.secondphoneapps.SecondPhoneTextInv&hl=en , or you can pick a red purse icon out at:  http://www.freenew.net/android/com-secondphoneapps-secondphonetextpurlic/583047.htm
• Hide my SMS:  http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/hide-my-sms/id527055824?mt=8 
• Great graphic here....Hidden Text:  http://itunes.apple.com/kz/app/hidden-text/id472626521?mt=8
• Text plus:  http://www.textplus.com
• Blacklist

Covering your tracks with Chrome

Webnotes by: Theresa Payton, Fortalice, LLC. Content also covered on WBTV's Protecting Your Cyberturf Segment featuring Theresa Payton and Kristen Miranda, Wednesdays 5:10pm


It seems like every time you turn around, someone is tracking you online.  Whether it’s your phone, your tablet, or even your web browser.  We have given you tips in the past to help cover your digital tracks but now it’s just become a little easier!   


That’s right!  You may remember that we told you that internet browser giants such as Microsoft and Google promised to help consumers out with “do not track” options and Google has just announced that they have added this feature to their browsers.  You had this feature, kind of...sort of...today but you had to know how to set various privacy settings.  Now it’s just easier to do.  Cyber expert, Theresa Payton, explains.



WHAT IS “Do not track”?:
Do Not Track is the feature that allows you to say, in simple “yes” or “no” terms how you feel about being tracked.

HOW DOES IT WORK:
The Do Not Track feature will send what’s called an HTTP header, this is a short message, to all the websites that you visit with a message that says "it's NOT OK to track me" or, "it's OK to track me".

WILL ALL WEBSITES RECOGNIZE THIS FEATURE?
Not yet so it’s still very important to make sure you set your privacy and security settings and just be aware of who is tracking you and who is no

THREE QUICK TRACKING THE TRACKERS TIPS:
It’s not always easy to get a big picture on who is tracking you and what they do with the information.  Their privacy policies will give you a little clue but they are often hard to read.  Your best bet is to insure you pay attention to:
1.  YOUR BROWSER SETTINGS:  Check those for privacy and security
2.  LOCATION SETTINGS:  Say “no”.  Most will work unless they need to use a GPS to help answer your question
3.  WATCH WHERE YOU CLICK:  Those ads on trusted sites love to follow you around so avoid clicking on them.  

RESOURCES:
This tool at Microsoft tells you if you have do not track set up and it looks at all browsers, not just Microsoft!
http://ie.microsoft.com/testdrive/browser/donottrack/default.html

You can try these following tools to see who is tracking you online:

Chrome:
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/ckdcpbflcbeillmamogkpmdhnbeggfja

Safari explanation of their do not track feature:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5275?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US

Firefox Browsers:  
a.  Abine lets you opt out of targeted advertising and tells you if a site is tracking you. www.getabine.com

b.  Collusion is an add on that works with the Mozilla   
Mozilla.org/collusion