InternetSafety.com

According to a recent survey released today, 80 percent of teens say they have no limits placed on their use of internet-enabled cell phones and mobile devices.

80 percent. That is an astounding number.

The survey, released by Cox Communications in partnership with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and John Walsh, says that the percentage of teens that are allowed unlimited access to desktop and laptop computers is a far lower number.

Technology moves faster than any of us. Most of us think of Twitter as a relatively new phenomenon, but the truth is Twitter is already middle-aged in web years. Hackers have already invaded and spread pornographic advertisements (trust me, I spent about twenty minutes frantically checking who we are following before figuring it out), and other similar applications (like Qik!) are already declaring themselves the next Twitter.

But at this point, how many of us aren’t aware that cell phones are nothing but another medium for the internet? If I felt like taking the time, I could be posting this from my iPhone.

Adults who were not born into the digital age (birthdate prior to 1980) need to stop thinking of the internet being on a computer. All one needs to access the internet is a device that can download a file from a server, and all smart-phones and most cell phones have that capability in varying degrees. And have had for years. So having a different set of rules or standards for computers and cell-phones simply doesn’t make sense anymore.

The Motorola RZR I bought back in 2005 had full internet capabilities, and my iPhone can not only connect to the internet, but has specialized applications for chatting, social-networking, blogging, and just about everything else you can imagine (we’ve all seen the ads).

The Internet exists independently of the medium we use to get to it, so having rules pertaining to usage of the web, not the device, is what really makes sense for parents.

Filed under: Internet Safety News