The nation’s largest ISP’s (Internet Service Providers) have come together to launch www.internetmatters.org, which caters to the growing need to protect children from “sensitive media”.
Acting as a well-rounded portal and hub for parents, the service provides useful information, stats, tips and online protection services aimed at making it easier for parents to control what their children are exposed to during their time online.
Marketing Week reports that the companies have “committed to the ongoing marketing of Internet Matters”, advertising its services via their website, bills and e-mails. They claim that, combined, they reach “90 percent of the UK online households”, which could prove beneficial in reaching out with relevant information to a significant number of concerned parents across the UK.
This new development comes right after the government proposed new legislature aimed at forcing ISP’s to provide a choice to households so that they can opt out of “adult content”. This suggestion, however, has had its fair share of criticism. Some claim that this is an extreme attempt at a solution to the problem and the filter is unable to differentiate between unsuitable content for children and useful information. For example, it has been noted that it could potentially block access to sex education sites as well as domestic and sexual abuse websites.
The Internet Matters website offers a vast range of resources, providing advice specialised for different age groups (from 0-5 to 14+), information on “technologies” which the internet exposes children to (online gaming, social networking, viruses) and explains the potential consequences that could result from inappropriate use (including cyberbullying, pornography and identity theft).
