Following pressure from the UK Government, Internet giants, Google and Microsoft, have agreed to block searches for child abuse images online. The move comes after David Cameron invited the firms to discuss ways of blocking child sex abuse images and “to do what is necessary to protect our children.”
Cameron has invested in over 4000 specially trained officers to “track, investigate and arrest those who seek to abuse children online.” Google and Microsoft are working alongside these and the UK’s National Crime Agency to target those who circulate the content by providing technical support in finding hidden, encrypted abuse images. Through tracking such content as it is shared across the web, the agencies can arrest those at the forefront of the crime. The need to protect our children from viewing indecent content and to stop them being approached by indecent individuals, is urgent. RedstorSafeguarding, in partnership with Securus, alerts school staff to potential child protection issues, empowering schools to provide an immediate response to an issue which may otherwise be missed.
Redstor will be hosting a safeguarding webinar on 4th December at 4pm, hosted by Sharon Girling OBE. Dedicating over 30 years of service to the police force, Sharon has worked at the forefront of national and international response to child abuse and developed the procedures that led to the creation of CEOP.
Securus Software, Redstor’s safeguarding partner, silently monitors devices to capture inappropriate words, phrases and images on a computer and alerts staff if such content is found. To help staff deal with safeguarding issues appropriately, schools have access to a wealth of resources such as a Securus safeguarding handbook and BeatBullying webinars. Should a school be alerted to an especially difficult or unusual case, staff have access to Securus child protection experts who can help establish the best course of action. For under £500 per school, the service offers teachers a chance to proactively protect children from harm, be it from indecent images, pedophiles or cyber bullying and supports a school’s legal duty of care.
Redstor’s range of secure and encrypted cloud services are already protecting the data of over 10,000 organisations across the UK. Redstor’s remote backup for schools service ensures data is safely backed up offsite in an encrypted format. Our cloud sync and share service, Centrastor, enables organisations to store and share files securely online from any device with an Internet connection and our CentraStage service enables support providers to guarantee that devices they support are regularly audited, patched and safely up-to-date for effective device management. Our Virtual Disaster Recovery service guarantees to have your systems up and running within minutes following a disaster. To find out more about our services and how we can help you comply with data protection laws and prevent data leakage, please contact us either by giving us a ring on 01189 515 200 or emailing [email protected].