I remember how cool I thought I was when I was allowed to get on AOL chat. The internet was this mysterious place where a series of sounds (crrrsshhh, biiiinnggg, drrrrreeeppp, ugghhhhhh) happened over the phone line and we were magically transmitting information with people all over the world.

Then there were the age/sex/location checks. The thought of this now makes my skin crawl!

Not going to happen here. Nope, nope, nope. We want our girls to stay safe from strangers and even friends. The thought of online bullying terrifies me and I know it is too often an acquaintance or could even be a close friend.

{The girls and I were trying to find a copy of their Girl Scout order form for a last minute order to be placed today. Unfortunately, a google image search is not something that kids can do on their own. Yikes!}

Right now, we just have started discussing online safety. They are only allowed on certain sites through their school website to protect them from going to unauthorized sites without permission. When they are on our tablets, they are only allowed to use a couple apps that we know are specifically for kids and don’t have ads that will take them to other sites. When the girls have their own phones (when they are, oh, like 40, right?) there will be a strict open phone policy. If we ask to see it at any moment, they must hand it over. I am not naive and know they will have ways around things, too.

Fortunately, there are people thinking about these things too like the creators of WebSafety whom I met at Mom 2.0 last month. Thanks to them I am able to share this information with you. WebSafety’s goal is to protect children by notifying parents of anything the might find inapproriate on their child’s phone or tablet, any risks they might be taking (drugs, dangerous driving or even abuse) or inappropriate behaviors. They use multi-platform monitoring and analysis of mobile phones, the internet, social media and texting.

How WebSafety Works

The WebSafety app is available in the Google Play store and can be downloaded onto any Android device. The activity of that device is then motor from a parent’s iPad, laptop or desktop. Parents can monitor multiple devices such as phones and tablets, customize alerts, and the kind of the information they want to receive.

WebSafety Product Features

• Dashboard: A real-time dashboard displays each child’s daily activities.
• Monitors apps: Detailed descriptions of apps downloaded by the child onto their phone or tablet are accompanied by WebSafety’s own summary of the app and suggestions for parents.
• Monitors text messages: Options include the ability to view all text messages sent and received, or limited to alerting parents only of words of concern or messages from specific people.
• Monitors websites: URLs for pornography and other inappropriate websites are flagged for parents’ review.
• Monitors social networks: Parents can view all photos uploaded to Social Media accounts in one convenient location, and receive notifications about words of concern used on social media networks.
• Curfew: Parents can set time restrictions to disable the device, with automatic notifications of out- of-hours use.
• Notifications: Reports can be customized to provide parents with real-time, hourly, daily or weekly activity summaries.
• Track location: Parents can view the current and past locations of the device.

Pricing

Various plans are available depending on the number of devices to monitor. All packages include a parent dashboard, access to the WebSafety forum and customer support.

DISCOUNT: For a limited time WebSafety subscribers will receive the service at half price. When signing up to WebSafety, the six-month period or one year plans will be 50% off the retail price.

Some parents might call it spying, but I feel it’s a necessary evil. There are far too many children taking their lives because of bullies and I want to protect my children in any way possible. I realize that not allowing them to have a phone is definitely an option to prevent it and of course, closely monitoring all of their computer usage. Having said that, I realize my own limitations and know that it’s very easy for things to slip through the cracks.

It’s time again for Mommy and Me Monday. Pop out from behind that camera and capture yourself in action with your kids. Check out the inaugural Mommy and Me Monday for more information. Need another reason to participate in Mommy and Me Monday? Read my post about why I blog with words from a friends’ husband.

**There really is only one requirement here, a picture of you and your baby or babies; your children, your “baby” (ie significant other) or even your fur babies. If your picture doesn’t feature you (meaning you must be in the picture), I will have to delete your link. It’s not fair to the others that follow the rules.*