Kids More at Risk Online than Alone on Streets

Yet Majority of children are left to roam Cyberspace unprotected - bring back 'Charley Says' believes TV presenter Coleen Nolan.

British Parents think children are more at risk on the internet than unsupervised in a park or on the streets in daylight hours according to a new YouGov poll commissioned by Sentry Parental Controls (www.sentryparentalcontrols.co.uk), which offers an innovative new way of protecting children online, around the clock, from anywhere in the world.

But while nearly all parents with children aged 6 to 16 warn their children not to talk to strangers if they pull up in a car or to walk alone at night, less than half have a protection package to monitor their children when using chat rooms and surfing the net.

Sentry's survey found:
52% of all British adults thought children were MOST at risk in internet chat rooms, versus 19% who said unsupervised in the park in daylight hours and 11% who thought walking alone to a friend's house during daytime was the greatest risk.

However, while 90% of parents of 6 to 16 year olds tell their children not to talk to strangers if they pull up in a car and 74% advise children not to walk alone at night, only 68% offer any forms of advice to children on how to protect themselves online and even less - at 43% - have any form of protection software to monitor their children's online activity.

A further sign of the times was that 60% of parents with children 6 to 16 year olds believed that banning a child from using a computer was viewed by them as a far worse punishment than grounding them (just 34% said their children would think grounding them was the worst punishment of the two).

"We need more awareness campaigns" says ITV1's Loose Women presenter and Mum of three Colleen Nolan, who is fronting Sentry's campaign to alert parents to the need to protect children online. "Bring back Charley Says!"

She added: "Most parents who grew up in the 70s vividly remember the Public Information film 'Charley Says...' that alerted children to the dangers of talking to strangers. Times have moved on but the way parents are protecting their children hasn't.

"I think awareness of the danger is there, as this poll shows, but parents simply don't know what to do. Allowing children to roam free and relying on them to protect themselves isn't enough on the web - parents need to watch over their children with Protection Software that's readily available to them and easy to use. We wouldn't let children roam the streets, why are we letting them loose on the web?"

Following the introduction of Sentry Parental Controls in the UK, for the first time ever, British parents can be alerted to any inappropriate online activity as it happens, as well as

- block any unsuitable websites, web chat and applications
- monitor all online activity - surfing, chat logs and email
- protect children from negative situations, such as peer pressure, alcohol and drug abuse
- control time usage and settings.

Sentry has been available in the US for two years and is currently used by more than 30,000 American parents. This is the first time it has been available to buy in the UK.

Sentry Parental Controls costs £49.99 for three licenses - equating to just £1.40 per month - a small price to pay for the safety of a child. Visit www.sentryparentalcontrols.co.uk for a free 15 day trial and more information.