From Publishers Weekly
Johnson cofounded one of Australia's first IT companies and is an expert on Internet security. When he became a father in 2002, he realized his young daughter would soon be tooling around online and would inevitably encounter inappropriate spam messages, among other hazards. He promptly founded an information Web site for parents to keep their kids safe online, which then begot this comprehensive guide. The Web is still a "wild, undiscovered, and unregulated frontier," Johnson says, a tool pedophiles use to look for victims. Nearly 90% of kids encounter pornography online while doing their homework, he warns. The good news is parents can take steps to protect their children so they may safely and effectively use the Internet, which Johnson presents—in spite of the dangers—as essential for contemporary learning. Most importantly, Johnson asserts, parents should educate their children (e.g., tell them not to give out personal information online), monitor computer use (place the computer in a shared place, not in a child's bedroom) and buy computer software to filter and protect. He suggests five programs that parents should install and walks readers through individual products, explaining the pros and cons and making recommendations. Rather than offering a diatribe on the dangers of the Web, Johnson offers a practical, well-researched guide to help parents minimize the Web's potential drawbacks. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
City Parent, September 1, 2004
Very much up-to-date …provides lots of information about the real threats to children, and what you can do about them.
Miami Herald, September 18, 2004
For parents of computer-savvy kids, this book is a must read.
NEA (National Education Association) Today, October 2004
Gives parents a guide to what kids are finding on the Internet and how to protect them from bad sites.
PC Utilities Magazine (UK), September 2004
Covers all the most common aspects… essential guide for parents whose kids know more about PCs than they do.
Australian Personal Computer Magazine, September 2004
A useful overview of the options available for improving the online safety of children.
Computer Times (Singapore), July 2004
Handy is the word that sums up this book.
Book Description
Protect your children from dangers that lurk on the Internet. Learn to identify the real threats--be they pedophiles, cyber-stalkers, hackers, spyware, viruses, or adware--and formulate an effective protection plan. Choose the best software for your needs and your budget from the book’s independent review of firewalls, web filters, anti-virus products, and more. Plus, a companion Web site hosted by the author includes updated data and information. Get FREE eTrust EZ Antivirus Software for ONE YEAR with Purchase of This Book--a $29.95 USD value.
From the Back Cover
“Rather than offering a diatribe on the dangers of the Web, Johnson offers a practical, well-researched guide to help parents minimize the Web’s potential drawbacks.” --Publishers Weekly
“A very valuable resource for families wishing to educate their children towards a safer and responsible use of the Internet.” --Nuria Quintana Compte, SafeBorders project (European Commission's Safer Internet Programme)
“An easy-to-follow, practical, and understandable guide for families to make their own and their children’s Internet use a safer experience…. Invaluable and authoritative.” --Bernadette McMenamin, National Director of Child Wise
“Simon Johnson’s book has raised the bar regarding the importance of protecting our nation’s most precious commodity .....your children! Parents and families need to know the benefits and the dangers they face in today’s online world. Information is powerful and this book is a must read!” --Teri L. Schroeder, CEO and Founder of I-SAFE America, Inc.
“This book solves many of the Internet’s mysteries, helping parents build the confidence they need.” --Senator Kate Lundy, Shadow Minister for the Arts, Sport and Information Technology, Australian Labor Party
About the Author
Simon Johnson (Victoria, Australia) has 10 years experience as an IT security professional with a number of organizations and government departments. He co-founded and managed Shake Communications in 1997, an IT security business. In 1998 he co-founded SecuritySearch.Net, which at the time, was the largest IT security portal on the Internet. SecuritySearch.Net received more than 155,000 page views per month and sent free security newsletters to more than 16,000 subscribers worldwide, per week. The site was sold in 2002 to US security firm GFI. The newsletter subscription arm of the business was sold to US security firm, Relevant Technologies. Johnson has been interviewed in television and print media on IT Security related topics, including Business 2.0, Computerworld, Corporate Risk, CNET News.com, Internetnews.com, Newswire, SBS World News, TechWeb, The Age, Wired Magazine and ZDNet News. He’s written content for Total Surveillance by John Parker (Piatkas Publishing UK, 2000) and reviewed the business and e-commerce chapters in the book, Internet and World Wide Web by Deitel (Prentice Hall, 2002).
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