NET SAFETY

Child Safety on the Internet There is little doubt that the internet will have a major role in shaping the way the world communicates in the future. The very reason which makes the internet so popular: that anyone can hook up and publish their opinions to a worldwide audience, means that it is very difficult to regulate the opinions and material that are on the net. The most widely publicised aspect of the "nasty side of the net" is pornography, though other dangers exist for young people in chat rooms and in sharing their email address with strangers. Young people need to be aware that on the internet, like in real life, people are not always what they seem and caution is always a good idea.

At Log-in we employ a number of strategies to control what young people access on the net:

All young people joining Log-in sign a form agreeing to abide by the Log-in membership and Internet rules. (See membership and Internet rules leaflet for details)

We use a filtering program called WebSENSE which blocks access to unsuitable sites. Log-in pays a subscription to the WebSENSE parent company who employ a team of "searchers" who track down and list all unsuitable sites (the Internet grows by about 55,000 new sites every day) every night the latest list of unsuitable sites is download to our computer.

Our most important measure is to ensure that all Internet access at Log-in is supervised by a trained member of staff, the facility is also designed to ensure that all screens are in full view of the public area (that's why we have a glass wall in the training room - it's not just for show).

Using these precautions vigilantly we believe that we have made Internet access for young people as safe as possible. We aim to continue to be in the forefront of safe Internet access for young people.