Imagine being in charge of policing the Internet and making sure everyone is afforded the right to live a secure and protected digital life. Well, the Department of Justice (DOJ) IT Strategic Plan for 2010 is charged with that task.

However, in the following diagram I wonder if only one per cent of the budget being allocated to regulatory activities is adequate…just an observation, what do you think?

On the other hand, some of the laws passed may be to quick, and overlook children are just that, children. For example, I know many of my colleagues applauded legislation against “sexting”. Unfortunately, in some cases the punishment did not fit the crime, and children became labeled as sexual offenders for life, missing the point that we are dealing with immature adolescent kids, not predators or pedophiles.

Legislation involving kids  is not a one size fits all and especially with the rapid growth in technology, and the fact that this technology is literally in the hands of kids. Unless parents accept the responsibility to assure his or her child’s has received some instructions for proper online etiquette, maybe there should be legislation that requires children to pass a course in best practices before permission to access the Internet is given. Maybe that idea is more theoretical, but the point is valid…Be prepared for the Internet.

Do You Think One Percent Is Enough?

The Internet is a fabulous tool for staying up-to-date on current events, gathering data and information and connecting with colleagues, clients and friends.

Every time you go online, however, you open yourself up to an array of potentially misleading advertisements, schemes and spoofs by hackers and identity thieves, and viruses that can take your computer over and steal your personal information.

These 10 tips will help safeguard you from these and other threats and keep you protected and productive while you are surfing the Internet.

1. Keep your firewall and antivirus software up to date. These are your first lines of defense against unwanted intruders. Most firewalls can be set to update themselves automatically and there are many excellent brands of antivirus software from reputable companies that are inexpensive or even free.
2. Don’t include personal information in your email address or online usernames. Using your full name and the year you were born is a popular habit that makes it easy for people to identify you and that’s a problem; identity thieves now have a large chunk of the information they need to make your life miserable.
3. Don’t open unsolicited email. If you don’t know the sender of a particular email, don’t open the message, as you could be exposing yourself up to a virus or a phishing scheme. Even worse, once your computer is infected, spammers can actually take control of it to attack other computers.
4. Never click on a pop-up or banner ad. Setting your browser to block pop-ups will help, but some will probably still get through. These ads look harmless and promise something good in return for clicking on them, but the reality is that you may be downloading malware that can harm your computer or invade your privacy.
5. Be wary of free software. While freeware and shareware from reputable sources can improve your computing experience greatly, downloading these items without checking out the source can load your computer with spyware.
6. Be wise about opening email attachments. Again, if you don’t know the sender, you shouldn’t open the email, but it’s especially important that you don’t open the attachment; a great deal of spyware and malware is distributed this way.
7. When given the choice, elect to receive emails in plain text rather than in HTML. While it’s great to be able to see all of the graphics and click on links to be taken directly to a favorite website, HTML emails can contain “web bugs” that send information such as your IP address and your browser and operating system types to a remote server.
8. Make sure email senders are really who they say they are. What looks like a legitimate email from your bank or another known company might in fact be a phishing scheme, designed to send you to a phony website where your personal information can be stolen. Phishing emails often contain misspellings and other details that just don’t seem quite right.
9. Stay safe when social networking. While it’s great to be able to make new friends and connect with old friends from the past, keep the personal information you share on these networks to a minimum. Never post your date of birth or home address on a social media site. Remember that your data can be accessed by people who are not your friends.
10. Remember that nothing online is private. Once you’ve sent something out into Cyberspace, it’s there forever.

About The Author: Randall Davidson is a co-founder of the innovative proofreading company, ProofreadingServices.Us. Through running his proofreading service, Randall has learned that it is essential to take certain precautions while online in order to protect important information and to safeguard his company’s reputation.

ProofreadingServices.Us, which specializes in providing online proofreading services, is committed to helping clients, both through articles like this on the company’s blog and through the professional proofreading services that the company provides.

We would like to thank our guest writers on The CHW Blog! We feel it’s a honor and pleasure, to have others participate and contribute to the great content, advice and opinions on and in our CyberHood, we all live in…
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Along with many other aspects of effective parenting, you surely are coming across numerous opinions about putting a baby to sleep. If you are a first time parent, and maybe even if you have several kids already, you may have unresolved issues about baby’s sleep. Your friends, relatives, and colleagues may even take their own views on the number of hours babies need for sleep. Here are several insights and tips that you could follow. Take note that these have worked with so many babies. Thus, they are worth trying out. Remember that every baby is unique. You may have to know the behavior and likes of your baby to better take care of him or her.

Where should the baby be sleeping? There are several issues that normally touch parents. Is it appropriate to allow the baby to sleep with you on your bed? Should a crib be used instead? If you decide to use one, where should it be located, in your own bedroom or in another? Experts strongly advise against sharing the bed with your baby. This could be due to safety concerns. The baby could easily get trapped under the pillows and blankets, or worse, your spouse. You should also consider your sleeping habits. You could be a heavy sleeper especially when tired.

Always strive to put your baby on his/her back when putting him/her to sleep. Doing so could help the baby’s breathing. Taking from this tip, avoid anything that could potentially interfere or affect breathing. In this regard, put away plush toys, comforters, and heavy blankets. Prefer using a firm mattress. In case you use a soft one, be careful and watchful as the baby could get his/her head stuck into it, making him/her unable to breathe.

Use a crib and place it in your own room. Doing so could help you make sure that your baby is sleeping safely at all times. You should also be available to attend to his/her needs. You could also opt to use a separate room, but be sure you hear the baby cry. Always make sure the room to put the crib in is comfortably, well ventilated, and clean.

Establish a sound baby sleeping routine. Doing so could significantly add to the comfort. It could also set as a clear signal for the baby to go to sleep voluntarily and automatically. You could set a bedtime routine through doing the following. Bathe the baby early in the evening. This activity could help the baby take a longer sleep at night. It would help if you would start bedtime by telling the baby a story or singing a lullaby. Follow it by cuddles and hugs. You could opt to further feed him/her before putting to sleep.

Dim the lights, but avoid making the room completely dark. You would notice that the baby would learn associating dim lights with sleeping time. Do not vary the routine you set as much as possible. Follow these parenting guidelines so that you could be able to avoid a great stress when putting your baby to sleep.

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