Here's a new rule for child surfers: Don't click on "yes" to all those "Download this!" offers they run into on the sites they visit - check with Mom or Dad first. "Why?" they might ask. There's a strong chance they'll be downloading spyware, or "scumware," as the Wall Street Journal's Lee Gomes calls it. It can "reset your home page to a porn site ... and then refuse to let you change the page … [Read more...] about Spyware: Not just a privacy prob
Graphic images online
Parents worry about the graphic images children are exposed to in the media, but Americans in general are divided about what should be available on the Web. Nearly half of Americans disapprove of posting images online that have been deemed too horrific to run in newspapers and on TV, according to a recent survey by the Pew Internet & American Life project. But "24% went online to view some of the … [Read more...] about Graphic images online
One very illegal summer job
Unbeknownst to countless families around the world, groups of teenage malicious hackers are renting out zombie family PCs to "spammers, fraudsters, and digital saboteurs," Reuters reports. "Zombie PCs?" you might ask. They're regular old Net-connected home computers that have been infected by "trojan" worms and viruses that allow the virus writers to control the infected PCs. "The result is a … [Read more...] about One very illegal summer job
Kid-tracking tech: Japan & UK
A primary school in Osaka will soon be testing a high-tech way of knowing children's whereabouts at all times. RFID (for radio frequency identification) chips will be attached to students' schoolbags or clothing tags and read by readers (like bar-code readers in grocery stores) that will be "installed in school gates and other key locations," UK-based Silicon.com reports. Legoland in Denmark is … [Read more...] about Kid-tracking tech: Japan & UK
Another view of hackers
We hear from the media much more about malicious hackers than about the regular kind - many of whom are young and still living at home! So, because many news people put a negative twist on the word "hacker," we thought fellow parents might be interested in the way hackers view themselves. Insights are provided in this USATODAY article (part of a series) on a conference in New York over the weekend … [Read more...] about Another view of hackers