Places is a natural extension of Facebook’s core functions as a social network. Rather than turning Places into a game, like Foursquare, by including elements of user competition, Facebook is looking to Places as a way for users to get more real-world benefit from their network of Facebook friends. Though I am not yet able to test Places (test-drive coming soon) I have done enough reading on it to discover a few facts and a couple of things parents and privacy-minded adults should look out for.

Places is currently only available for use on Smartphones though it will likely be rolled out for Facebook’s desktop version as well soon. I see no reason why someone carrying a netbook or laptop won’t be able to participate shortly. It is an opt-in service, meaning it has to specifically be chosen and interacted with by the user. No one will simply begin sharing their current location without their knowledge, which shows that Facebook is learning from past mistakes about being too liberal with user data.

People that participate in Places will be able to check in at a location and share their location with their network of Friends. So Johnny and Suzy are friends, and Johnny checks in at his local coffee shop and Suzy gets his status update that he is there. Meanwhile, Johnny on his smart phone sees a “Here Now” screen displaying which of his friends are at the coffee shop.

There are two specific measures people can take to lessen the chances of sharing their geolocation data with too many people:

• Don’t allow friends to check you in. Places has a feature where one of your friends can check you in at a location without your knowledge. This just jumps off the screen as a bad idea, especially for younger users.
• If you use lax privacy settings (Share info with everyone) and use Places you are going to automatically included in the Here Now list, and it will be visible to everyone who uses Places. I would choose stricter settings and if you are really concerned about your data, opt out of this altogether.

What is “Sextortion”? Sextortion is when teens send nude pictures or videos of themselves via text messaging or the Internet and then are contacted by someone, often pornographers, that tell the teen they will spread their images all over the Internet unless they create more explicit photos or videos for them. Federal prosecutors say this new crime is on the rise and the main victims are teens.

As if we didn’t have enough to worry about as parents. Now we have to add sextortion to the pile. But knowledge is half the battle. And now you know about it. So please talk to your kids about it. Not only are there legal issues they can face (including jail time) if the participate in sexting but now they could get pulled into the seedy world of pornography via sextortion. It’s bad enough if they sent a nude picture or video of themselves to someone at school but just think if they’re blackmailed into sending nude pictures and videos of themselves to a complete stranger. That is a terrifying prospect. 

5. What technology does the school provide for the classroom, and how will the teacher use it?
Internet connected devices today range from your standard desktop computer to SmartBoards and iPads. Ask how the technology will be used in the lesson plan, and if you have questions about the educational value of something—like YouTube—ask why it’s being included.

4. What are the rules regarding mobile devices at school?
Are children allowed to use a mobile device for calculating and research? Is there a punishment for texting in class? Or, are mobile devices not allowed in the classroom at all? Knowing the answers to these questions can help your child steer clear of trouble.

3. What are the social-networking rules regarding student/teacher interaction?
Many teachers use Facebook and other social networks to connect to students and make themselves available for questions, while others do not allow such connections. Ask your child’s teacher what their ground rules are, and make sure any social-networking requirements for your child fall within your comfort level as well.

2. Does your school have a Cyberbullying policy?
Cyberbullying refers to bullying through electronic means, and is an emerging area of concern for educators and parents alike. Ask about your school’s policy for dealing with Cyberbullying, and what is expected from both the parents and student when it comes to dealing with Cyberbullying incidents. Many schools have recently implemented harsher penalties for Cyberbullies, including suspension and even expulsion.

1. Does your school filter?
Filtering school networks is becoming more common but is not yet ubiquitous. Find out what measures your school has in place to protect your child from harmful online content and contact while they are at school, and what steps are followed if a student tries to access banned material.

Make sure to review your school’s rules with your child so he or she clearly knows what kind of online activity can get them in trouble. Establishing your own Internet usage rules at home helps kids carry that same care into web usage at school. For more information about building a game-plan for home and school Internet rules, visit our resources section.

BEAUMONT – Arrests in Gregg and Smith Counties of men charged with crimes connected to child pornography were featured in an announcement this week of a U.S. Marshals national strategy to address child exploitation.

Attorney General Eric Holder announced Monday the release of the Department of Justice's first ever National Strategy to Combat Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction.

“The strategy also provides the first ever comprehensive threat assessment of the dangers facing children from child pornography, online enticement, child sex tourism, commercial sexual exploitation, and sexual exploitation in Indian Country, and outlines a blueprint to strengthen the fight against these crimes,” said spokeswoman Davilyn Walston.

As part of the overall strategy, the U.S. Marshals Service is launching a nationwide operation targeting the top 500 most dangerous, non-compliant sex offenders in the nation. Additionally, the department will create a national database to allow federal, state, tribal, local and international law enforcement partners to deconflict their cases with each other, engage in undercover operations from a portal facilitated or hosted by the database, share information and intelligence and conduct analysis on dangerous offenders and future threats and trends.

The department also created 38 additional Assistant U.S. Attorney positions to devote to child exploitation cases, and over the coming months will work to fill the vacancies and train the new assistants in this specialized area.

The Eastern District of Texas received a position and hired Christopher T. Tortorice in December 2009 to prosecute Project Safe Childhood cases exclusively.

“Although we’ve made meaningful progress in protecting children across the country, and although we’ve brought a record number of offenders to justice in recent years, it is time to renew our commitment to this work. It is time to intensify our efforts,” said Holder. “This new strategy provides the roadmap necessary to do just that – to streamline our education, prevention and prosecution activities; to improve information sharing and collaboration; and to make the most effective use of limited resources. Together, we are sending an important message – that the U.S. government, and our nation’s Department of Justice, has never been more committed to protecting our children and to bringing offenders to justice.”

Offenders cited in Monday’s announcement included Albert Slatter, Jr., a 59- year-old assistant band director for the Longview ISD, was sentenced to federal prison on Apr. 29 for possessing images of child pornography on his home computer.

Charles Orange, 45, a convicted sex offender from Longview, was indicted on July 14 and charged with possessing, receiving and distributing child pornography.

If convicted, he faces up to 40 years in federal prison.

This is great news as this strategy will help keep our kids safer on-line and off-line. But parents we need to continue to take an active role in being aware of what our kids are doing on the Internet. We are the first line of defense.

The article points out that parents should create an Internet safety contract with their kids, but the article does not go into detail about what the contract should contain. To those parents interested in the idea and seeing what such a contract would look like, I invite you to read our Gameplan. The InternetSafety.com Gameplan sets out core agreements that a family can make together about responsible online use, and provides a solid bedrock of principles that if applied will lead to safer online interactions.

The one part of the article that I find a bit strange is the following sentence: “In fact, 95% of all abuse and exploitation can be prevented through education.” 95% is a pretty big percentage to be throwing around without any source or research to back it up. While we see education as a core necessity in Internet safety, I fail to see how this deals with situations like typosquatting and some cases of predation and cyberbullying.

Do you believe that education alone can keep a child safe online, or do you believe that a combination of both education, rules, and the necessary tools to enforce those rules is the safest route?

Posted on July 27th, 2010 by Stanley Holditch

Let's take a look and some of the results:

Pretty good job parents! These are all good things to be doing so if your not doing some of these things I'd recommend them.

Yahoo's survey had some interesting findings regarding Cyberbullying: 

• 81% of parents know what cyberbullying is.
• 1 in 4 adults who are aware of cyberbullying have either been victims or know someone else affected by cyberbullying.
• 37% of parents feel that they know what to do about cyberbullying.
• Almost three-quarters (73%) of people want their child’s school to play an active role in teaching kids about online safety and citizenship.

The biggest thing that sticks out to me is that only 37% of parents feel like they know what to do about cyberbullying. They're aware of it but feel ill-equiped to deal with it. For some great information on cyberbullying and how to deal with it check out the website www.stopcyberbullying.org.

Parents keep up the good work. Keeping your kids safe online is a never ending battle and the stakes could not he higher. We're here to help keep you up on the latest information on dangers that could impact your kids online. If there is a topic you want to know more about let us know. We want to help.

It’s no surprise this type of thing happens.  90% of kids, ages 8 to 16, have viewed porn online and it happens most often while they’re doing their homework.  A simple misspelled word and a mouse click can send your children into a world of graphic pornography.  The images can become seared into their memories and could lead them into a life long addiction to porn. What can we do to avoid this potential tragic outcome?

Get a filter!  Internet filtering software blocks your computer from accessing porn and other inappropriate websites.  So when you child misspells a web address that could lead to porn it stops the offending webpage from loading.  As I speak to parents at churches and schools I am amazed at how many of them don’t have Internet filtering software.  They either don’t know what it is or just never thought about getting one.  I’ve had several parents tell me they have the software and when I ask them what they have they tell me Norton Anti-Virus.  Their computer might not get a virus but that software doesn’t do one thing to stop their kids from going to porn sites.  So there’s a lot of confusion or ignorance about Internet filtering software among parents. I’ll try to solve that right now.

First, you absolutely need Internet filtering software if you have an Internet connection in your home. It’s one of the best things you can do to protect your children from Internet dangers.  Second, I’ve done all the research on the various Internet filtering software’s that are available so you don’t have to.  Third, don’t wait another minute to get it.

Here’s where to go and what to get:

If you have a Mac or a PC get this one: SafeEyes

The software above can do a lot more than just filter inappropriate websites.  It can block and monitor chat, stop peer-to-peer file sharing, check email for inappropriate content and so forth.  All great features that you need in addition to filtering but we’ll talk about these other features later.  Just get the software. If you’re still reading this stop and download the software.  If you continue reading this I’m going to show up at your house and download the software for you.  You think I’m kidding.  That’s me ringing your doorbell.

What the heck is going on? Miley and Lindsay are (where) kids stars. I think Perez is a jerk for posting nude photo’s of Miley Cyrus online. She is still a child (she’s 17) so that child pornography. I hope he has to stand if front of a judge and explain himself. But did you see how Miley dressed at the MuchMusic video awards? Her outfit’s barely covered her and sometimes things were exposed as she danced around. She has millions of fans that are kids and I hope they weren’t watching. Apparently Miley wants to grow up. But why does growing up have to mean dressing like a slut?

Now onto Lindsay Lohan. She’s had a lot of personal struggles since her days as a child star. She had a lot of great movies but as she got older her films just weren’t doing much at the box office. So her stardom started to fade. That doesn’t always sit well with someone used to the limelight. So how do you get your star to rise again? Play the role of a porn star (Linda Lovelace) in an independent film. Why this extreme choice?

And then there is Hustler. They’re setting out to make the most expensive porn film to date. A 3D Avatar like film that is actually based on the Avatar aliens. A film seen by 10’s or millions of kids now set to be made into a porn film.

Is there a trend here? Kids stars wanting to expose their bodies to the world and a kid film turning into porn. What do kids think about all this? I think it all starts to desensitize them. I think it starts to mess up their inner moral compass; all without ever visiting a porn site. They don’t need to. They can see a half naked Miley Cyrus on a video awards show. So parents keep an eye on those “child stars” that your kids look up to. You never know how they’re going to turn out. Remember when Britney Spears was a sweet kid star who said she wanted to remain a virgin until she got married? That sweetness seemed to fade fast. I think Miley must have been a fan. It seems she’s following in her footsteps.  

What should you do when you catch a spouse or child looking at porn? Dr. Robi provides some psychological background and a few tips:

There are different types of motivation for behavioral change: negative and positive. Negative motivation focuses on what I don’t want in my life (what I hate). Positive motivation focuses on what I do want in my life (what I love). One type of motivation seeks to replace something because it’s deficient; the other recognizes something is worth protecting or investing in, because it’s valuable.

Negative motivation typically comes from a place of guilt about our actions because they are at odds with our identity. In psychology, this experience is called cognitive dissonance. Shame creeps in when we start to hate ‘who’ we are becoming, based on our repeated poor behavioral choices.

Feelings of guilt and shame contribute to a sense of worthlessness and emotional pain. Our brain perceives these feelings as a threat and therefore seeks after pleasure (even if it’s transient pleasure from the very activity that ultimately made us feel guilty and ashamed in the first place). In the absence of personal esteem, we fail to stand up to the temptation and give in – time and time again. This relapse cycle has been well established in scientific literature on addictions.

Rather than condemning our loved ones, we have the capacity to help set them free. When we understand that it’s more effective to highlight someone’s strengths than continually point out their weaknesses, our loved ones become encouraged to reach their potential. Any behavior that’s inconsistent with their identity and purpose quickly becomes self-evident. When a person recognizes their value and chooses to engage in right choices (behaviors in line with personal beliefs about themselves), they exercise character. Character is significant insomuch that it helps determine both the amount and durability of a person’s self worth.

How can we encourage the development of character in our loved ones and highlight their value?

Dr. Robi

• “Only 3% of adult web sites require age verification”. No wonder it’s so easy for kids to get access to porn online. 

• “43% of all Internet users view pornographic materials...1 out of 3 are female”. That’s a wake up call for parents who think they only need to worry about what their sons are doing online. Girls are looking at porn online as well.

• “10% of porn users admit to being addicted to pornography”. Yes you can get addicted. It makes makes you wonder how many people (including kids) are addicted to porn but haven’t admitted it.

• “Companies like Time Warner, GM and Marriot make millions selling erotica”. GM is selling porn? Maybe if they just stuck to selling cars they wouldn’t have needed a government bailout.

• “The United States spends $13.6 billion on porn”. That’s a lot of cash and I assumed we’d be number one but we’re number 4. Any guesses on what countries are the top 3 spenders? 

There are a lot more interesting numbers on the chart. You can check it out here: http://teeny.me/4w. Oh, and if you’re a parent and you live in Utah there is something you’re number one at. Not that I’d tell anyone if I were you. Check out the chart for details.

Parents, it’s time to wake up to the dangers your kids are facing online. It’s a minefield out there. If you protect them from the dangers by educating yourself and putting appropriate safeguards in place and if you prepare them for what they may encounter online and what to do when it happens you’ll help prevent them from going down a destructive path. 

• According to CNNMoney.com during the iPhone OS 4.0 announcement event in April Steve Jobs answered a question regarding porn apps on the iPhone this way: “You know, there’s a porn store for Android. You can download nothing but porn. You can download porn, your kids can download porn. That’s a place we don’t want to go – so we’re not going to go there.”

• Steve Jobs is known for occasional responding personally to customer’s emails. In April, according to TechCrunch.com, Jobs responded to a customer’s email that stated a concern about Apple becoming the moral police. Jobs response, “we do believe we have a moral responsibility to keep porn off the iPhone.”

• This month Steve Jobs had an interesting email exchange with Ryan Tate (writer of the Vallywag blog). Mr. Tate wrote Jobs challenging a statement in a new Apple commercial that said the iPad was revolutionary. Mr. Tate wrote, "If Dylan was 20 today, how would he feel about your company? Would he think the iPad had the faintest thing to do with “revolution”? Revolutions are about freedom." To which Jobs replied, "Yep, freedom from programs that steal your private data. Freedom from programs that trash your battery. Freedom from porn. Yep, freedom. The times they are a changin'…" Mr. Tate responded, "I don't want “freedom from porn". Porn is just fine!". Jobs reply is classic, "…you might care more about porn when you have kids..."

Although Apple cannot do anything to keep porn off the Internet they are trying to make sure it’s not readily available through their products. I don’t know of any other major company or CEO that is taking this kind of stand again porn so Apple and Steve Jobs, “Thank You!”. 

So who is this stinking horde my mom is always praying we’re safe from. When I was young am sure it was anything that may steal my innocence. Today, unfortunately, there are so many more things that can steal our kids innocence. Moms have to face not only Internet pornography but also sexting, cyber-bullying and online predators. The horde has grown and the battlefield is more intense.

So how do moms make sure they’re battle ready to face the growing masses out to steal their kids innocence? Education is one weapon. The better you know the dangers the better you can help your kids in the battle. So many kids have been lost on the battlefield because their parents didn’t even know they were in danger. Setting up a good defense perimeter is another good battle strategy. You can do this by setting up Internet use guidelines for the home. Schools have them and students have to sign them. Homes should have guidelines also. Add to that a strong Internet filter and chat monitoring tools and you are on your way to a good defensive perimeter.

And moms don’t forget prayer. When I was young I always remember my mom sitting in the same chair in our living room with her Bible in her lap and her eyes closed in prayer. She prayed for God’s protection over me and for His guidance. And over 3 decades latter she still does. Moms I know the battle is tough but never give up and never surrender. Your kids are counting on you!

NOTE: The video seems to start and stop a bit at the beginning but it smooths out once I start talking. Don't know why. Technology - it's great when it works :-).

Our kids are kind of like fish cruising through the ocean of the Internet. As they swim around to various websites often bait will be dangled in front of them. It could be a suggestive ad on Facebook that chums that water. A misspelled web address may surround them with many chunks of flesh and the sent can be strong. They may even swim over to a well-known fishing hole they heard about at school to see what’s “hanging around”. They know what’s inside the bait - a big sharp hook that will tear into their flesh. But somehow their brain just turns that reality off. They just see the bait. It looks so good, it’ll feel so good to eat, maybe if I just swim near it, maybe if I just smell it, maybe it I just bump into it, MAYBE IF I JUST EAT IT!!!!!

They’re hooked. They thrash around wondering what’s happening. They try to swim away fast and hard but they can’t get away. Something keeps pulling them back. They thrash more and swim harder but they’re getting tired. Suddenly they’re gasping for air, flopping, wondering how they got in this situation…

They’re back in the water, they don’t know how or why but they don’t wait around to find out. They swim as fast as they can away from all the floating bait vowing never to go near another piece of it. Days or weeks go by and they swim carefree; that terrifying experience a distant memory. As they’re swimming they see something floating in the water. They get closer. They realize they’re a bit hungry. They notice a very nice piece of bait and go in for a closer look.

As this cycle continues to repeat itself the hook in the bait isn’t so scary anymore. Your kids kind of get used to it. Kind of enjoy it. So mom and dad what are you going to do to stop it? Have you talked to them about the dangers of porn? Have you put anything on your computer to help stop some of the bait: X3Watch.com. Safeyes.com?

Goes to show we don’t issue warnings for nothing.

RJMetrics, an analytics firm, has done some digging on the new web phenom ChatRoulette and found that like most interesting ideas on the Internet, it’s being dominated by lonely dudes and pervs. Specifically, of the users sampled (2,883) that were alone, 89% were male, and only 11% female. Furthermore, as many as 1 in 8 ChatRoulette encounters were deemed “R-rated” or worse by the firm, which either involves nudity, requests for nudity, or lewd acts.

The one bit of good news about the site is that the U.S. has the lowest perv-rating of all the countries at 10% concentration, compared to UK’s world-beating 22%.

The iPad’s heavy emphasis on media, web browsing, and gaming will make it an absolute hit with kids of all ages, and parents buying the device can expect it to quickly find its way into little hands. Buckleitner lays out his case for iPad being a digital romper room (paraphrased for brevity):

1. Kids think with their fingers and the iPad’s touchscreen is designed for that.
2. Software for the iPad is easily accessible and affordable.
3. Interactive books seem like a natural for the device.
4. Paint and drawing apps will get a much bigger canvas.
5. Added battery life lends itself to entertainment on long car rides.
6. Base price makes it very affordable, though still out of reach for your average third-grader.

For these and the million other reasons that tiny fingers will soon be tapping, pinching, and zooming their way across the Internet on the iPad, we are making our Safe Eyes Mobile filtered browser available for the iPad as well as the iPhone and iPod Touch. Stay tuned.

In response, the site’s creator has placed a “report abuse” button on the site, but it appears to be a button to nowhere, as the speed-dating nature of the site means that users are more likely to simply click next, especially since the site’s inception it has been unclear what actually constitutes abuse. Moreover, there appears to be no process for actually removing a reported user from the site even if someone were reported.

The site’s creator, Andrey Ternovskiy, can hardly be blamed for a lack of foresight as he is just a kid himself at 17. He originally created the site as a way to expand on he and his friends’ chatting activities, and did not bank on the site becoming the overnight success that it has.

The site’s success, and subsequent media coverage, means that people are hearing about the site and many of those will be minors. Our CTO Aaron Kenny says that his concerns with ChatRoulette go beyond just concerns of minors being exposed to indecent or pornographic content:

“Even the concept of being hooked up with a random person for a chat can be dangerous for a child, so we’ve categorized it as a blocked site,” Kenny explained. “In terms of getting something inappropriate, you can almost say the odds on ChatRoulette are even worse than playing Russian Roulette.”

Safe Eyes users will be automatically protected from exposure to the site, but parents who do not use filtering technology may want to talk to their kids about why the site is inappropriate for them, and check up frequently on their child’s computer use. Tests of the site have revealed that a user can be exposed to pornographic content in less than two minutes.

Dan Scott

Heart-throbs John Mayer and Robert Pattinson both recently gave interviews to big magazines, and in the process revealed interesting perspectives on pornography.

While Mayer’s interview is likely to be noted for some other things said which Mayer will likely regret, we found his points on the impact of pornography on his generation to be rather salient:

"Internet pornography has absolutely changed my generation’s expectations. How does (porn) not affect the psychology of having a relationship with somebody? It’s got to." - John Mayer

Mayer added that his pornography consumption has made sex less satisfying for him and has made it harder to connect to the woman that he is with and less likely to seek out meaningful relationships with women.

Robert Pattinson of the wildly successful Twilight saga, who apparently objected to having to appear with several near-naked models for a Details cover shoot, also wondered about the impact of the prevalence and availability of porn on his generation.

Pattinson in describing his aversion to the shoot lamented that today, as opposed to the eighties, that porn is “everything” and “everywhere,” and that it has lost aspects he described as “quaint” and even respectful.

Many groups, from the feminist left to the Christian right, have connected constant pornography consumption to sexual crimes or deviant behavior, but what Mayer and Pattinson both inherently realize as members of younger generations is that the effect of pornography goes far beyond such worst-case scenarios. The increasingly apparent and felt impact is that the ubiquitous nature of online pornography is changing the face of sex and relationships in much the same way that social networking and media are changing interpersonal interaction: substituting endlessness for intimacy.

What do you think? Will the availability and ubiquity of pornography in the digital age substantially alter human relationships and behavior?

Secondhand porn is porn that is seen involuntarily by someone who was not intending to view it. Lets look at some examples. I read a story a couple months back of a mother that was on a plane with her children. She was seated next to a man with a laptop who had just put in a cartoon movie. Her four children were drawn to the screen. The cartoon characters soon started to do things to each other that cartoon characters don’t usually do. They started having sex. It was cartoon porn! The mother was shocked. In another story a man in Texas was viewing child porn on his iPod on a public bus. He was arrested. I have heard several stories of people seeing porn when pulling up behind SUV’s or Van’s equipped with DVD players with the video screens that hang down from the ceiling.

With all the technology out there it’s getting easier and easier for your kids to be exposed to secondhand porn. As I mentioned earlier secondhand porn shares some effects similar to secondhand smoke. Secondhand porn can irritate your eyes and it can especially hurt children. How do you explain to your 4 or 5 year old why two cartoon characters were naked and doing sexual things to each other? How do you explain the orgy scene that your 9 or 10 year old just saw on the video screen in the van you were behind at a stoplight? These are things that kids should not be exposed to and that they’re not ready to process.

Just like laws have been passed to protect everyone from the dangers of secondhand smoke, laws should be passed to protect everyone, especially our children, from secondhand porn. Until then we as parents have to be aware that secondhand porn is out there and we have to be ready to steer our kids clear of it.

Sexting is one of those crimes where the victim is also the perpetrator. Lets say, for example, your teenage daughter takes nude pictures of herself and sends them to her boyfriend. Soon after they break up. The boyfriend is upset so to get even he sends your daughters nude pictures to several of his friends at school. The photos spread and soon large numbers of the guys and girls at school has seen your daughters’ nude pictures. If that weren’t bad enough word of these pictures spreads and the police find out and investigate. Since your daughter is the one who took the pictures of herself and sent them to her boyfriend she can be charged with production and distribution of child pornography. That’s a federal offense that comes with possible jail time and her being listed on the national sexual offender list. That’s something that can stick with her for the rest of their life.

The above example is based on countless stories that have taken place across the country and shows how serious the consequences for Sexting can be. But in a “Sexting” story that took place in Ohio the consequences where much greater. Jessie Logan, a high school senior, sent a nude picture she took of herself to her boyfriend. He sent it to several of his friends and the photo’s spread into the general population at her school and then eventually made its way into other schools. Jessie started getting teased relentlessly and was constantly called all kinds of horrible and filthy names. This abuse didn’t happen just at school but just about everywhere she went. It even followed her home as the name-calling persisted on her MySpace and Facebook accounts. Eventually it all became too much for Jessie and her mother found her hanging in her bedroom. A young life snuffed out by something all parents need to be on the look out for, “Sexting”.

So how do we protect our kids from this new threat? Talk to your kids about Sexting and all its consequences. Also check you kids cell phones often and without warning and see what kinds of pictures they have on them. Some would say that’s overly intrusive. I would say its just good parenting.