Thursday 24 March 2016

Keeping Children Safe on the Internet

The internet and social media have huge benefits for children. Together, they enable children to get access to resources, communication and support that they may otherwise find difficult to access.
However, it also opens them up to risks such as cyberbullying and exposure to harmful content.
There are three key risks the digital world poses to children. 
  1. Contact: The possibility of a child having inappropriate contact when meeting a stranger they befriended online.
  2. Conduct: Online threats, bullying, and misuse of personal information on social sites.
  3. Content: Exposure to pornographic, inappropriate or violent content.
British Council recently produced these very useful posters to celebrate the Safer Internet Day. These e-safety posters depict clear messages to enable children to make safe choices when engaging online. I am reproducing these here with credit to the British Council






Drop me a line if you would like get hold of a high resolution file to print for your school, classroom, etc.


Wednesday 18 December 2013

8 Criteria for review and decommissioning of websites

An integral part of Digital governance in any large organisation is a live audit of the digital estate and the ability to review and decommission products where appropriate.

It is becoming common for digital leaders in a large global organisation to inherit a large portfolio of local, regional or project based websites. Not every digital product brings value to the overall objectives of the organisation. I am often asked what criteria do I  use to identify and segment the on-line presence for review that leads to potentially decommissioning of useless and redundant products? Following is my list:

  • A Project has ended and the website is still live
  • Project is live but the content on the website is outdated
  • Project is live and a service is still offered but the site is unsupported
    • Staff resources are not there to update content
    • Infrastructure is not supported by internal resources or through any other maintenance or support contract
  • Project/service has evolved into a different product but the old website is still live but redundant
  • Project/service is live, a website exists but is not used - evidenced by traffic/analytics data
  • Inappropriate content
    • Legally owned by the organisation but there is no business ownership internally or externally
    • Off brand – does not follow organisation's brand standards and guidelines
  • Local/country based websites that are duplicated through regional or corporate portals
  • Websites with identified security and data protection issues
Are there any other criteria that could be included to these?