New Zealand and overseas entrepreneurs have awakened to the business opportunities in developing and marketing Internet safety products. As a result, school Trustees and Principals are now getting bombarded with marketing material about filtering, security, and monitoring products, and the services of education and training providers, and security and auditing professionals. How can school officials choose what will work best for their school?
Many businesspeople have developed Internet safety enterprises not only because they saw a potential market, but because they saw a real need and were genuinely concerned about young people and adults being safe in this new environment. Such business people often have a very in-depth knowledge of the issues and the Internet Safety Group (ISG) has relied on many for their expertise and support.
The Internet Safety Group does not endorse any product but we will soon be offering a page on our website of product and service information, with links to assist schools (and parents) looking for assistance. This list will be expanded as more businesses hear of the listing opportunity and new businesses emerge with products to promote. Any questions can be sent to queries@netsafe.org.nz. For further information, schools can also call the Ministry of Education's ICT Helpdesk at 0800 CALLICT (225 542) or email callict@tki.org.nz for advice.
However, one way of choosing a new product or service is for Trustees to look at the message conveyed in the advertising and marketing material. If any company is marketing their product or service as a one-stop 'solution' to a school's Internet safety 'problem', be very wary. Making such a claim is outlandish hype and betrays a lack of knowledge about the complexity of creating a safe Internet learning environment.
Another way of evaluating is to look at the tone of their material. If they are presenting the Internet as a terrifying place of unscrupulous pornographers, malicious hackers and insatiable sexual predators be wary again. Such nefarious people are certainly on the Internet but only because they are in our society offline, and businesses who have a responsible marketing approach will have a balanced message about the benefits and risks of the Internet.
Here are three positive examples:
1·NetMaster is a monitoring product offered to schools by Commspec (NZ) Ltd. Their letter to New Zealand school principal's includes mention of an Internet safety Policy, endorses the Internet Safety Kit and offers the ISG's website address - www.netsafe.org.nz
2·Technocatz is an education provider that works with schools to offer quality adult education. They are developing an Internet safety course which will include a link to the Netsafe website and incorporates many of the recommendations of the Internet Safety Kit.
3·Multi Serve Education Trust addresses Internet safety issues when delivering a wide-range of professional development, financial and strategic planning services to teachers, principals and board members. This organisation is a member of the ISG and has a permanent link to the Netsafe website.
Businesses that truly understand the issues of Internet safety will encourage Trustees and Principals to have a multi-faceted approach and will offer key resources to be used in addition to their particular product. They will also have a philosophy of working collaboratively with organisations like the Police and the Internet Safety Group, which the Ministry of Education has designated its 'agent of choice' for delivery of Internet safety education.
A safe Internet environment is established in a school through:
1) proper infrastructure (policy, use agreements and protocols)
2) systems maintenance (security, auditing and possible filtering)
3) rigorous monitoring
4) education.
The Internet Safety Group maintains, however, that education remains the single most important factor so all New Zealanders are safe wherever they access the Internet, whether school, home, cafe or cellphone.
Liz Butterfield is Director of the Internet Safety Group. She can be reached at queries@netsafe.org.nz
