I was doing some research yesterday for our Thursday highlights posts called TIWHTY Thursday and I came across a very interesting post about credit card fraud: you-think-it-wont-happen-to-you read their story!!

One of the first things I do on my computer is to access our bank account and review our statement. I guess it’s lucky that I do this every morning because today I immediately saw three suspicious transactions that had occurred around 6:30 a.m this morning. They took place in California; two of them at 7-Eleven stores. In California! We live in Kentucky and I have never even been to California. These transactions were made using my husband’s ATM/Debit card number… Read more

This type of story is all to often what Dave and I hear on a daily basis and especially weekly on on our CHWR live radio show, our guests and industry professionals are dealing with this kind of Credit Card fraud and many other examples of online security fraud, banking fraud, website fraud to read more examples and our thoughts on security solutions on these subjects take a look at Your Online Security Authority Blog to learn even more lessons on how to protect you and your family!

We have 3 very special 3 part series on Online Security Issues:

Keeping Your Teen Safe Online | Part I | Part II | Part III |

Craigslist: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly | Part I | Part II | Part III |

How to Use Online Shopping and Online Banking Wisely | Part I | II | III |

So, please don’t be casual when it comes to your Online Security or your families internet safety! You Think IT Won’t Happen To You? That Is What Everyone THINKS! and that is what leads to becoming a victim of online fraud, thinking it could never happen to YOU!

You know how much I hate Statistics… BUT, they show that you will be a victims of some type of online fraud sometime in your lifetime! So start protecting your personal information, and keep track of all your receipts plus any transactions online and offline as well… Because most credit card fraud starts offline, and then the cybercriminals use your personal info and ID for more (Black Market) fraud online!! Read more about protecting your Identity, from our good friends at the: IdentityTheft.info Blog!

Learn IT, DO IT, Teach IT, Share IT, BE IT

Your CyberHood Watch Partner

Bill Wardell

Radio Security Journalist

© 2006 – 2011 CyberHood Watch

What a HONOR for Dave and I to to have one of the top security professionals in the world on today’s CHWR show, David Perry – Global Director Of Education For Trend Micro to announce their brand new product called:

Titanium

David talked about some the MIND Boggling Statics that we the consumers deal with on a daily basis in protecting our own PC’s and not really understanding or knowing how big the problems really are, that they the internet security companies of today deal with 24/7 such as 100,000,000 new threats to keep us all safe from!

Folks it’s very alarming to say the least, you need to listen to the this interview now, so do it today don’t wait!!!

And, please get yourself protected TODAY!!

David says that at least 1/2 of the worlds computes are infected with some type of virus, malware, Trojan, or malicious code!!!

That is 50% of the worlds populations Personal Computer’s are compromised, right now…

So, what does that mean well if you like me and have more than one computer in your HOME then at least one them is letting the cybercriminals steal your ID, or grooming your child, sharing your banking information to the Cyber-underworld for profit!!! or for just plain old fun by causing disruption, conflict or CHAOS!!

DON’T Wait and be a part of the Problem… BE A Part Of The Solution!

You can get a 30 day free trial here: 30 Day Trial – TITANIUM

Key features and benefits include:

• Cloud technology — leverages the Trend Micro Smart Protection Network plus real-time antivirus scanning to provide always-on Internet protection to keep you safe from the latest and ever-evolving malware threats
• Automatic protection — removes the guesswork of protecting your PC, intelligently and immediately reacts to threats
• Simple installation — it takes just a few clicks
• Streamlined interface — it is easy to understand and simple to manage

We want to thank David Perry for taking time out of his hectic schedule to stop the CyberHood today and share his news with The CyberHood Watch and all of our supporters, listeners and followers, and CHWR friends

Learn IT, DO IT, Teach IT, Share IT, BE IT

Your CyberHood Watch Partner

Bill Wardell

Radio Security Journalist

I came across this video doing research, and after watching the video it became clear how much technology is changing the dynamics of our children. Not necessarily is the change bad or good but, we need to be mindful that it is a dramatic change in the development of our youth and a topic worthy of more communication and awareness.

In this video Phillip Zimbardo, a psychologist and professor at Stanford University discusses the perspective of time:  “past oriented” and “future oriented”, and then equates it to the role of education.

If our children are our future, it behooves us to understand what and how the Digital Age is changing our youths perspective of learning. Considering the fact that every nine seconds a child drops out of school should be an indicator there needs to be an understanding as to why. According to Phillip our childrens’ brains are literally being rewired with all the stimulus from the technologies our children are exposed to on a daily basis.

The CyberHood Watch partners have discussed with several guests the idea of kids learning how to unplug from the digital environment, which is not likely to happen. That is why this video gives hope to the idea of identifying what may need to changed to accommodate the future of our children functioning in today’s digital world.

Something that caught my attention, among the many interesting points brought out in this video,  which is the disappearance of the family gathering around the dinner table every evening. I have always personally felt that the disappearance of the family dinner times was a significant turning point in many families and their relationships with their children. I would venture to guess that those who still have dinner together also have better adjusted children when it comes to digital behaviors…Just my opinion.

What are your thoughts after watching the video?

david c ballard

We can plant the seeds of potential in a child that will allow him or her to grow to greatness. But first, to understand what is planting?

Planting seeds in a child is to introduce the child to new concepts and ideas through your own behaviors and attitudes. They see and come to understand what you do and why for the first time. They sometimes question what you do. So you need to have your answers to be consistent.

One thing that I’ve observed in my lifetime is that what can be a small plant in a parent, if the same seed is planted in a child, it can become a very big plant- too big for your comfort.

For example, a parent can have a television, and watches the 11 o’clock news at night, plus the occasional special television show such as the academy awards. In other words, the usage of television is very moderate. But for a child, that seed of watch television can become a habit to the degree that a child can watch television for 4 to 5 hours a day. What was a little occasional treat for the parent became the main meal for the child.

I saw the precise same pattern described above with a family I know. If that was for television, can you imagine how addictive the internet can be? That’s why you should take a careful look at all the things you do on a daily basis in front of your kids, and see what seeds you want to plant in them.

Seeds cannot be planted by themselves. Either you plant them, or someone else plants them. If you give the planting over to someone else, they may plant seeds in your child that you didn’t want to be planted. Then you have a large challenge as a parent to uproot that unwanted plant.

So everything you do that your child can learn from, are seeds. Whether you like it or not, a child will look at and absorb everything that goes on around him or her. So you have to ask yourself a question: when it comes to the internet, what attitudes and behavior do you want your children to have planted in them? If you show them that you “can’t live without it” then your child will pick up on that tenfold and perhaps show behavior and attitudes that you never intended in the first place.

Your CyberHood Watch Partner

Bill

Melinda, Dave & Bill, Are Consequential Strangers

“Consequential Strangers” sounds like a great title for a love story. Truth be told, a consequential stranger can become your life time partner, who then becomes your intimate other. We need to recognize that our world surrounds us with consequential strangers. Jeanie, who scans my long list of items, just before leaving Costco and we exchange a warm hello and goodbye, is a consequential stranger. Keiji, who cuts my hair every sixth week on Friday, for the past fifteen years, is a consequential stranger. Even my neighbor of twenty-three years is a consequential stranger.

Yes, I know these people, I know their children, but they are not my intimates, like my wife, my children, my siblings, or my mother. Neither Jeanie, nor Keiji are an intimate, but there is a connection, and although the power of these people really does not seem to matter, they really do.

“Consequential Strangers” is about the outer circle of relationships, beyond the sphere of our intimates. Understanding who our consequential strangers are is evidence that there is no reason to ever to feel alone.

The Internet has exploded the number of people in our lives on a daily basis and understanding the value of consequential strangers opens a new world of connections and resources for those willing to make an effort to communicate.

Melinda Blau A Consequential Stranger With Dave & Bill

Consequential strangers can be more influential than the intimates in our lives. Melinda Blau, author of “Consequential Strangers” shared a story of how a consequential stranger accomplished in a single moment of conversation with her friend, what Melinda and her intimates had been suggesting for some time for their friend to do. Melinda and her friends had suggested that their friend investigate the use of a pump for her diabetes with no success, even though they all knew it would improve the quality of her life. It wasn’t until their friend, while sitting poolside, struck up a conversation with a consequential stranger, who also had a friend who had diabetes and had invested in a pump, which improved the quality of their life. That conversation, with a consequential stranger, lead to Melinda’s friend investing in the pump. Don’t underestimate the power of a consequential stranger. The convoy of consequential strangers in ones life is an invaluable source of resources in an individual’s life if properly nurtured.

Melinda brought up an important topic of Internet Literacy. Now, most of us equate literacy with books. However, here we are talking about the twenty-first century online literacy, which does not belong to books alone.

I’ve mentioned this before that the Internet is an unbiased – neutral platform – like the artist’s blank canvas, which accepts any color imaginable. The same holds true for the Internet – it accepts all information – good or bad. It has been Melinda’s observation that parents who educate their children regarding the dangers of the Internet do better or are safer on the Internet.

Begin Communication Early With Your Child

Once again, another guest alludes to the importance of communication. Without a doubt, communication with your child is an important key issue to the well-being and safety of children in the digital age. Don’t freak out! That is the advice for parents given by children. Don’t judge – listen! Follow this advice, and if you have made it possible for your child to come to you when he or she feels uncomfortable about something said, or done on the Internet, you will have done your child and yourself a favor.

In many ways the Internet is nothing more than the new big attraction in town where kids get to hang out and socialize. Melinda talks about how kids are learning 21^st century skills and they breathe technology and the Internet. Kids are reading, it may not be books, but they are reading on the Internet. The reading aspect concerned me once when I thought my son wasn’t reading enough. When I expressed my concern he shared with me what he did read. He enjoyed reading on the Internet. Not only was it Internet based, but his depth of reading was what impressed me. His interest is soccer, and his depth of interest of what professional soccer coaches had to say to their multi-million dollar players regarding strategies and motivation of the players was more than I expected. Kids are communicating, although it is through electronic devices, nonetheless they are communicating.

However, it is with these new technologies that parents need to be reminded not to abdicate their parental rights in enforcing rules of etiquette when using the Internet.

Be sure to listen to our interview with Melinda Blau, author of “Consequential Strangers”.

david c ballard

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Image by Getty Images via Daylife

WOW – Super Bowl XLIV – How many of us look forward to all the great commercials, I know I do. In addition to watching great commercials, an outstanding game, and then to top it all off…Your team wins!

My career started in New Orleans and having spent eight years there and meeting my Uptown “Crescent City Lady” (wife) at Mardi Gras, the same year Super Bowl XV was played in the Superdome; I was happy to see the Saints win.

Now that I have said that let me switch gears and talk to you about an issue I have with the Super Bowl XLIV commercials, and in particular Motorola and the Megan Fox commercial.

Just this evening I attended a lecture at Judge Memorial, given by Adam J. Schwebach, Ph.D. Dr. Schwebach presented parents with tips on how to talk to your teens about cell phone safety: Texting, Sexting, CyberBullying, etc. Sexting is a big concern and law enforcement is having a difficult time in how to prosecute under aged kids. Every state but Vermont and Utah treats Sexting as a felony. Imagine your child being tried as a felon, and then branded as a registered sex offender the rest of his or her life.

The CyberHood Watch covers this problem as well as many others in a downloadable eBook called, “Think This Won’t Happen To You”. However, Sexting is not a problem to take lightly. Many teens have opted to commit suicide to escape the embarrassment and the humiliation when pictures have found their way on to the Internet. This brings me to why I believe Motorola’s Super Bowl XLIV commercial with Megan Fox is acting irresponsible and insensitive to a grave issue parents are dealing with on a daily basis.

Motorola must be aware of the Sexting issues parents and law enforcement are facing. I am by no means straitlaced or narrow-minded; however, to capitalize on the very nature of promoting the digital transfer of sexual innuendos only exacerbates the problem by further misuse of Motorola’s new digital media technology. What is the message we are sending our kids?

Motorola’s levity only diminishes the severity of the problem, which they chose to ignore in order to profit, while ignoring the current issue parents, educators, and caring adults are trying to overcome. I certainly understand their marketing ploy, but it does not help to curb a real dilemma parents are trying to correct when the very company manufacturing the product promotes the subtle message of Sexting. Again, we are sending our children the wrong message, and Motorola’s judgment to air the Megan Fox Super Bowl XLIV commercial is as immature as an adolescent Sexting.

david c ballard

Conduit Open compatible

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Birthdays are normally special times to celebrate with friends and family. Everyone, especially kids, looks forward to this day when friends and loved ones come together for the sole purpose of celebrating this special moment. As such, this day should be made memorable and unique. There are many new birthday party ideas that come up on a daily basis on how to entertain the guests as well as to have a great day.

Before considering making a party for this great occasion, it is quite important to put into consideration the theme of the occasion and also one’s budget. Otherwise, one might end up overspending and borrowing from the people around. Birthday party ideas have been thought of by kids who have been there as well as their parents. The thoughts forwarded on this topic are in the categories of kids, tween, teen and twin themes and ideas. All these come with a lot of tips on how to make this special day a memory to linger on in the life of the celebrants.

The kids tips are for those between the ages of one and 10. From here, parents or organizers of such ceremonies can pick a wide range of ideas to use in the celebration of their young ones day. The Tween themes are for those between the ages of 10 and 12 while the teen ideas serve those in their teen ages. Finally, the twin themes are fun tips for twins.

Birthday party ideas go ahead to give different ideas that people can engage in. One of the tips put forward is sleep overs. This is where the parents of the young ones allow their children to spend the night in the house of the host child. They could also engage in various games.

Peter Gitundu Creates Interesting And Thought Provoking Content On Birthday Party Ideas. Read More Of His Articles Here BIRTHDAY PARTY IDEAS

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/parenting-articles/birthday-party-ideas-1417784.html