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Tag: Monitoring

  • FBI Drones in Domestic Surveillance

    FBI Director Robert Mueller made headlines by admitting that the federal government has used drones to surveil residents of the United States.

    Mueller acknowledged that pilotless aircraft with surveillance capabilities were used in a “very minimal way” and only on “particularized cases” with “particularized needs.”

    In the wake of Edward Snowden’s claims about federal telephone surveillance, the capacity of the federal government to keep tabs on citizens is touchy.

    Be that as it may, confirmed reports of drone usage on home turf are rare, the most high-profile instance being against Jimmy Lee Dykes, who shot a 66-year-old bus driver to death and took a kindergartner hostage. Drones were used in part to end the Dykes stand-off.

    Still, the potential of domestic droneage is disconcerting. Lawmakers as politically diverse as Rand Paul (R-KY) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) have expressed dismay at the use of drones, each indicating unease with the potential use of unmanned aircraft to keep tabs on American citizens.

    Even so, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano claims that any domestic drone usage will remain within a “security perspective without invading American’s rights.” Senator Mark Udall (D-CO) issued a statement agreeing with the idea that drones can be the most effective way to monitor domestic legal issues, claiming that “unmanned aerial systems have the potential to more efficiently and effectively perform law enforcement duties.”

    And yet some citizens wonder: When will “law enforcement duties” enforced by drones extend to rolling stops? Scary times, indeed . . .

  • Friending Your Kids On Facebook Not Good Enough According To Recent Study

    Friending Your Kids On Facebook Not Good Enough According To Recent Study

    The leading online monitoring service for kids’ social networking activities, SocialShield, released some concerning findings today from a consumer study. The study surveyed more than 4,000 parents and reveals that less than 8% are aware of cyberbullying incidents involving their own child.

    According to George Garrick, SocialShield’s CEO, “Unfortunately, the monitoring techniques that most parents think are good enough to help keep their kids safe, are often not good enough. There is simply too much content being created by our kids and their peers–not to mention predators–for parents to keep track of without help. We expect this situation to only intensify in 2012 as more social networks develop and more kids get involved.”

    @SocialShield
    SocialShield    RT @parentingsingle: The Top Social Networking Terms Kids Don’t Want Their Parents to Know. http://t.co/XUz4E6eL 9 days ago via HootSuite ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    Why don’t parents know? Kids today are conducting social networking activities in different locations and using a wide variety of devices. They are also communicating across a broad range of media platforms. Of the parents SocialShield surveyed, 52% report their child accesses social networks from the family computer, 42% on his or her own computer, 25% from cell phones, 8% from tablets or handheld devices, 8% from a friends’ computer and 5% from school computers.

    Another reason parents are unaware is that most believe their children will tell them about cyberbullying incidents. Unfortunately many kids don’t tell because they’re embarrassed about the situation, worried they did something wrong or they’re afraid of backlash from the bully. They also fear losing access to their computer.

    According to the study results, 36% of parents surveyed use the most common monitoring technique by “friending” their child to track his or her social networking activity. Unfortunately behavior shows that kids often use chat messages, groups, closed forums, personal SMS texts and other forms of communication (24% of cyberbullying incidents reported occurred on cell phones) that are more difficult to monitor and often escape even the most diligent parents.