Thursday, July 9, 2009
Snapshot of parental-control use
Parents seem to have a love-hate relationship with parental-control software. "Four out of five parents that use parental control software don't turn it on, despite being concerned about their children's online safety," NetworkWorld.com reports, citing a survey by McAfee computer security company. In other highlights, 52% of parents "admitted they never changed the security settings on their parental controls software"; nearly two-thirds haven't talked about "online security" with their kids; just under half say they monitor kids' online activities but 30% said they leave the kids alone in their rooms when using the Net, and 26% of all 5-to-7-year-olds have a computer in their rooms.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
That is very discouraging data! I understand the love/hate issue with parental controls, but to not even discuss the issue of making wise choices online is neglectful in my view. It means parents are not engaged in a significant part of childrens' lives.
ReplyDeletePatti A.
52% not changing isn't bad if the defaults are good, but I suspect this is due more to a lack of understanding of how to use the software and usability issues.
ReplyDelete