The apps designed to help beat the bullies
As our BeKind campaign has shown, bullying is a massive problem for British children and teenagers. But where it was once something confined to the school playground and classroom, the torment for many continues long after the school day ends.
Social media acts as a way for bullies to send a barrage of abuse 24 hours a day. So what steps can parents and guardians take to ensure their child is safe online? And what precautions should they be taking to keep their children out of harm’s way?
Richard Pursey joins us to talk about his groundbreaking AI software for protective parents, while Alice Beer will highlight the apps which let you monitor your child’s online activity.
There are several types of apps that parents can get their hands on - some are free, some come at a one-off cost and others require you to sign up to a subscription. Today’s apps provide parents with help and advice for identifying and combating cyberbullying and online threats, filtering out inappropriate content, and tracking and spying on your children.
Know Bullying
A free app from the US government, Know Bullying provides parents with ways of talking to their children about cyberbullying and online safety.
In the ‘Learn’ section there is comprehensive details on how to spot online bullying, how to intervene, and supporting the victims.
TooToot
An exact alternative from the UK government does not exist, however the government recently invested £4.4 million in an app called Toot Toot which allows people to screenshot examples of cyberbullying and post them anonymously so teachers can then view them and act accordingly. This only works on iPhones/iOS.
Net Nanny
Parents sign up for a costly monthly subscription - for a 5 device family package we paid £43.00 for the year.
This allows parents to see what kind of online content their children have been viewing. They can then decide if they want this type of content to be shown to their children, flag up a warning if they start viewing it, or blocked entirely.
Kaspersky Safe Kids
This popular antivirus software also sells an app at £14.99 which allows parents to filter the kind of content being viewed on their children’s devices.
For the one-off cost, there is no limit on the number of devices parents can set up with this filter.
Webwatchers
This app is installed onto the admin’s device i.e. the parent’s, allowing them to see all the recent activity on another phone - everything from an email received and the location of the phone.
CloseCircle
Describes itself as your in-pocket bodyguard, providing parents with up to date information on any natural disasters happening and where their children are. £595 for a family of 6 subscription. For iPhones only.
SafeToNet
Richard Pursey and his wife have developed an app which uses artificial intelligence to monitor how children and teens behave online. Launches on Android on Thursday 15 March 2018 and on iOS in 5-6 weeks time.