Just wondering if anyone at MNHQ has heard of Cyber-Buddies - a social networking site for children.
I heard mention of it overnight on FiveLive "Up All Night" in their Outriders web spot.
The idea is great - a safe alternative to FaceBook for those too young to register on FB. By getting school to verify a pupil's ID, the sign up process blocks adults (and perverts) but this project is still in its early stages.
Seeing how many parents comment on MN that their "under 13s" have accounts on FB, but also how much conflict and undesirable content there can be, it seems ideal for MN to support (in publicity terms at the least) as not many would be up at 02:30 to hear this on radio!
It's the idea of a Swansea teacher, Rebecca Mullan, and won her a prize when a newspaper got together with a web/media firm looked for ideas in South Wales (extract from the newspaper website ) :-
Rebecca impressed judges with her idea for Cyber Buddies, a safe and secure networking
site for children aged 7 to 13.
She said: "As an ICT educator I have seen with my own eyes the dangers children can
face on the internet, especially with social networking sites.
"Fortunately there are some parents that won't give their child permission to join sites like Facebook, but sadly there are others who allow their child to lie about their age to gain access to an account.
"Children will always want to be involved with the latest craze, let's give them a safe and secure craze of their own.
"I haven't seen anything that specifically targets this age range."
Cyber Buddies will require approval by a teacher before children can access an account.
So, what do you think ?