Facebook Launches Child Protection Application
National PTA and Facebook announced a formal collaboration to promote responsible and safe Internet use to kids, parents and teachers.
Together, National PTA and Facebook will establish a program that will provide information, support and news to encourage citizenship online, reduce cyberbullying and advance Internet safety and security, Facebook said.
PTA and Facebook will aggressively promoting Internet safety information to their respective audiences. National PTA will use its Website (www.pta.org), and reach out to the 24,000 local PTAs across the U.S. with a goal of reaching every American public school. Facebook will raise awareness of the resources among the parents, teachers and children using its service through an in-kind Facebook commitment equivalent to $1 million and promotion on other parts of the site, including the safety center.
Facebook will also adopt an application aimed at improving the online safety of its younger users. The application appears on a user's profile page when they add or bookmark it and allows children and teenagers to report suspicious or inappropriate behavior. Particularly aimed at users aged 13 to 18, it also provides help, advice and support about staying safe online. An automatic message will appear on the Facebook homepage of all teenage users, inviting them to add the application.
"Our vision is that each child, parent and teacher will have the knowledge and tools they need to harness the power of the Internet effectively ? and safely," says Charles J. "Chuck" Saylors, National PTA President. "Today, as we kick off National PTA?s convention in Memphis, we are announcing a partnership that will provide parents all across the nation with the knowledge, tools and resources they need to keep their children safe in this ever-changing technological society."
"Nothing is more important to us than the safety and well being of the people, especially the many teenagers, who use Facebook," says Sheryl Sandberg, Chief Operating Officer of Facebook. "Only through the constant and concerted effort of parents, teachers, law enforcement and industry can we keep kids safe and help them develop into tomorrow?s leaders. We are proud to be working with National PTA toward that goal."
As was the case with the recently redesigned Facebook Safety Center, Facebook and PTA will consult with many child safety, education and technology experts to collect, build and maintain a set of multi-media education resources for this initiative. The process will include significant input from Facebook's global Safety Advisory Board.
PTA and Facebook will aggressively promoting Internet safety information to their respective audiences. National PTA will use its Website (www.pta.org), and reach out to the 24,000 local PTAs across the U.S. with a goal of reaching every American public school. Facebook will raise awareness of the resources among the parents, teachers and children using its service through an in-kind Facebook commitment equivalent to $1 million and promotion on other parts of the site, including the safety center.
Facebook will also adopt an application aimed at improving the online safety of its younger users. The application appears on a user's profile page when they add or bookmark it and allows children and teenagers to report suspicious or inappropriate behavior. Particularly aimed at users aged 13 to 18, it also provides help, advice and support about staying safe online. An automatic message will appear on the Facebook homepage of all teenage users, inviting them to add the application.
"Our vision is that each child, parent and teacher will have the knowledge and tools they need to harness the power of the Internet effectively ? and safely," says Charles J. "Chuck" Saylors, National PTA President. "Today, as we kick off National PTA?s convention in Memphis, we are announcing a partnership that will provide parents all across the nation with the knowledge, tools and resources they need to keep their children safe in this ever-changing technological society."
"Nothing is more important to us than the safety and well being of the people, especially the many teenagers, who use Facebook," says Sheryl Sandberg, Chief Operating Officer of Facebook. "Only through the constant and concerted effort of parents, teachers, law enforcement and industry can we keep kids safe and help them develop into tomorrow?s leaders. We are proud to be working with National PTA toward that goal."
As was the case with the recently redesigned Facebook Safety Center, Facebook and PTA will consult with many child safety, education and technology experts to collect, build and maintain a set of multi-media education resources for this initiative. The process will include significant input from Facebook's global Safety Advisory Board.
