Symantec Launches Tools to Make Internet Browsing Safe for Kids - News Updates

Symantec, makers of Norton security software, announced today the launch of a new family safety service, “OnlineFamily.Norton” and a new online tool, “Norton 360 Cyber Safety Index”, to help parents better manage their kids online.

According to a press release, the Norton 360 CSI, available at www.norton360csi.com, is an online survey that helps parents to gain a better understanding of their families’ online risks profile and assess their protection levels and threat savviness. Upon completion of the online questionnaire, parents will be provided with a report that identifies their cyber safety index rating, as well as relevant safety tips and advice tailored to their risk profile.

OnlineFamily.Norton is available at http://onlinefamily.norton.com, for free until 1 January, 2010 and includes features such as search word logging, social network monitoring and real time messaging which allows kids to send information to their parents in real-time, via the OnlineFamily.Norton site or through email, about their intentions when attempting to visit a blocked Web site.

It also includes customizable tools to keep kids safe including Instant Messaging Monitoring, convenient website control among others. OnlineFamily.Norton is available in English with comprehensive filtering for U.S. and Canadian sites. To use OnlineFamily.Norton on a PC (Windows XP Home or Professional, SP2 or later; Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005, Windows Vista 32-bit or 64-bit, SP1 or later) or Mac (Mac OS X 10.5), parents need to sign up and create a family account at http://onlinefamily.norton.com. Then they need to download and install Norton Safety Minder, a small application, onto each child’s computer.