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Text messaging monitoring software helps to prevent cyberbullying

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TeenSafe, creator of an iPhone and Android phone monitoring software, provides parents the ability to see the text messages and social media activity being sent and received by their children to ensure they are not suffering from the harassment of cyberbullies. A recent increase of smartphone use by children as young as eight has dramatically increased the frequency of cyberbullying and other harassing behavior across all age groups. TeenSafe provides parents a virtual window into their child’s digital world by providing convenient access to all their mobile phone activities. This information can be used by parents to create dialog with their children, helping open lines of communication and stop cyberbullying. TeenSafe is very easy to set up and is the first iPhone monitoring solution that does not require any modifications to the device.

Currently, over 75 percent of teens in the US have smartphones and according to BullyingStatistics.org, half of all students admit to have been cyberbullied. Of that half, only 1 in 10 informed an adult about the incident.

“One of TeenSafe’s highest priorities is to prevent cyberbullying and the devastating effects of harassing behavior among teens. Kids today are so closely tied to their mobile devices, we feel it is more important than ever to really understand what is being said so we can help guide and teach them through these challenging situations,” said Ameeta Jain, co-founder of TeenSafe.

Article adapted from original press release

New York state Senator compares cyber-bullying to drunk driving

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Before killing himself recently, a high school freshman talked to his mother about being gay, and he contributed an online video to “It Gets Better”. But the teasing that followed him was relentless. “Years ago, drunken driving wasn’t viewed as a big deal, even though it has the potential to kill people. What we’re doing with bullying is changing people’s perception of it,” said a rep for NY state Senator Jeffrey Klein (pic), who supports legislation to stop cyber-bullying. It comes in the wake of New Jersey enacting the nation’s toughest anti-bullying law after the suicide last year of a gay university student who was bullied. The New Jersey law requires a uniform response to every incidence of bullying, including corrective action plans and time frames for intervention. The proposed legislation in New York to make it easier to prosecute online bullying is aimed at creating a “chilling effect” to discourage the harassment, said Rich Azzopardi, spokesman for state Senator Jeffrey Klein, author of the bill. Azzopardi said.

[via IOL.co.za]

Syracuse University groups sign cyberbullying resolution

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Responding to the dangers of digital harassment, Syracuse University Student Association President Neal Casey signed a resolution that urges administrators to revise the Student Code of Conduct. The Students Against Cyberbullying resolution calls for the university to explicitly mention cyberbullying as a type of harassment in the Code of Conduct. The resolution also denotes the need for campus-wide education about the prevalence and negative effects of cyberbullying.

During the past two months, SA worked with the Residence Hall Association, Pride Union and the Pan-Hellenic Council to draft the resolution. The presidents of the three collaborating organizations signed the bill. The Daily Orange reports SU administrators are in full support of the resolution, and revisions to the Code of Conduct are already in the works, Casey said.

Looking forward, the task of educating and uniting the student population against cyberbullying falls to student leaders, he said. “Members of student organizations are very engaged students, and we have the opportunity to reach them easily,” Casey said. “We need to stand up as a generation and say, ‘No, this will not be tolerated on our campus anymore.'”

[via The Daily Orange]