Spending time online is a common part of being a kid these days, and we can’t remind parents enough of how important it is for you to get serious about talking to your kids about what they do online. In 2007, the Department of Justice reported that nearly 30,000 registered sex offenders were found using MySpace, and while major efforts have been made to crack down on these threats, parents and kids need to stay on guard while online. An increasingly popular outlet for kids and teens is interactive gaming. In the last few years the gaming experience has exploded online, allowing participants to interact with an unlimited number of players from anywhere in the world. This includes being able to chat with friends and other players who they meet online. Of course, this another place a predator can find your kid. Continue reading Are Your Kids Safe From Predators When Gaming Online? »

We’ve all received unwanted spam messages sent to our email inboxes. And now with more of us sending text messages, checking email and accessing the internet through our phones, we are opening ourselves up for a new area of vulnerability. Experts estimate that this year as many as 1.5 billion spam messages will be sent out to mobile devices.

In 2003, Congress passed the CAN-SPAM (Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography) Act in order to help stop spam. However, there are some loopholes in the Act that may still leave you and your phone vulnerable to spammers. Continue reading Outsmart Scammers: Don’t Be A Victim Of Smishing »

While MySpace has stepped up security and rid the site of the profiles of some 29,000 registered sex offenders, parents are the first line of defense in their children’s online safety.

On July 22, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children will be hosting their 3rd annual Safety Summit with John Walsh and Lauren Nelson, 2007 Miss America, leading a discussion with tweens and teens about Internet safety and ways parents can help their kids  be safer online.

Parents need to get involved in their kid’s online activities despite the technology generation gap. The AMW Safety Center is your portal to the tips that can help you ensure that your kid is using the Internet safely and not becoming a target for online predators. Continue reading Your Kid’s Internet Safety Begins With You »

With the amount of time we are spending time online these days, it’s apparent that the web has become an important resource for our society. Whether shopping, keeping up with current events or staying in touch with friends and family, there are many benefits that you are getting from going online. It probably never occurred to you that you might be leaving something behind. Some sites may ask you for personal information to create an account, or to verify your identity, but according to the experts at the National Consumers League, your information may also be used by that site for marketing or other purposes. They may even be sharing your information with other sites. Your information might be freely available and accessible through a simple search done by anyone with an internet connection–including potential thieves and scammers. Continue reading Outsmart Scammers: Protecting Your Privacy Online »