October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, a time to remember that bullying doesn't just take place in the classroom: In this high-tech world, it follows children home.
Cyberbullying by peers and online predators has become a major concern for parents. Here are a few apps you can download to monitor and diffuse any potential bullies, and stay in touch with all of your family members.
BullGuard Mobile Security
If you worry that your child is being harassed, there's a way to keep the cowards in check. BullGuard Mobile Security is a parental control app and web service with the ability to monitor Internet activity: messages, pictures, downloaded content, and Internet sites.
Remote access gives you the ability to apprehend any mean messages before your child does and delete them if necessary. You can then blacklist any unwanted contacts from messaging systems, email, and social networks.
GPS tracking is included too, so you can make sure your child arrives at school on time and even locate a lost or stolen phone. If the phone is stolen, you can remotely lock and wipe out the device. And conveniently, if you can't find it all of your contacts, calendars, and other info are backed up on a server -- so you can reload onto a new device.
Other services include anti-virus protection to ward against identity theft and online fraud and a firewall to protect your personal details. The program is a little more expensive than most apps at $29.95, but it is compatible with Android, Blackberry, Windows and Symbian cellphones, and includes a web service that can be accessed on your PC. If you family has several different phones, it'll work on all of them.
Glympse
Soccer game? Piano lesson? Is your head spinning trying to remember where each of your family members is headed next? You can easily check in with everyone using Glympse. The location sharing app helps you keep track of all activities and remind you who is headed where. The interactive map makes it easier to coordinate pick-ups, drop-offs and meet-ups.
If your kids are old enough to travel to and from school on their own, parents can make sure they arrive safely with just a Glympse -- information shared privately among your family, keeping everyone safe.
Here’s how it works:
Download Glympse for iPhone, Android, Blackberry or Windows.
iChildAlert
If for some reason your child goes missing, increase your odds of finding thing them quickly using iChildAlert. Download the app and add a profile of each of your children with an up-to-date photo and description. That information can then be easily sent out notifying your neighboring area, social networks, and police. Having this information organized ahead of time allows you to create an iChildAlert Poster to print out.
Users can even add details like fingerprints and dental x-ray to their child's profile with the Record Uploader. And create your own Notification List with friends and family members' emails and text messages.
Here's how it works:
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