Mobicip

The StarTribune.com recently published an interesting article, appropriately titled "Parents: Are you a high-tech snoop?".  The author, Suzanne Ziegler, states: " Parents who are finding themselves outgunned by tech-savvy tweens and teens are looking for ways stay on top of what their kids are doing online. It's daunting for parents, who grew up when snooping was a matter of picking up the other phone line to listen in or finding where a diary had been hidden. Now, a growing number of devices -- including phones and laptops -- let their children access the Internet anywhere, anytime. So, tech companies are responding by developing a growing arsenal of spy gear -- aimed at parents -- that's cheaper and easier to use.

We agree with Suzanne and we appreciate her featuring Mobicip as Spy Gear for Parents. Educators and Parents choose Mobicip's app to ensure their mobile kids use their mobile devices (iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, etc) safely and securely.

Education Apps Review (IEAR.org) recently posted a review about Mobicip, their review is below and can be found on the IEAR blog.  In their review, IEAR shares the overall educational value of Mobicip: "This app is very important for education because it allows schools to send the devices home without having to worry about what the student may access."  Thank you IEAR.org!

IEAR Review: 
"Purpose: This app is essential for schools that send the iPod touch home with students.  Mobicip is a safe Internet browser that replaces Safari on the iPods interface.  Instead of Safari, students click on the Mobicip icon to access the Internet.  The functionality is the same as Safari but students now only have access to safe sites.  Teachers and administrators can set the filtering level based upon the age of the student.

In addition to the basic app, teachers also have the ability to subscribe to the premium service ($9.99. annually), which allows for more customization.  Teachers can block or allow websites and categories on the device in order to have more control over what the student sees.  Teachers are also able to login to the Internet and view each device and monitor what sites the students have accessed.   There are also a number of reports that teachers can run that shows what types of sites are blocked and how often they were accessed.

Program Functionality: The navigation of Mobicip is essentially the same as Safari.  It is very easy to use.  Initially the teacher will need to set it up on the iPod so they can enter the login credentials.  This is done only once.  After this, the student can open the Mobicip icon and it will go straight to the Internet.

I especially like the bookmarks that come with Mobicip.  These are all safe and useful websites for the kids to access.

Overall Educational Value: This app is very important for education because it allows schools to send the devices home without having to worry about what the student may access."


 

Scott Meech, the founder of IEAR.org (Education Apps Review), recently featured Mobicip as a resource in an IEAR.org Classroom Live 2.0 Session. You can find his slides below as well as a link to his blog post: http://www.iear.org/iear/2010/8/14/classroom-20-live-session-8142010.html

Thousand Oaks, CA - Mobicip.com, the leading internet safety and parental control service for mobile devices like the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad is getting more and more adoption by family friendly groups, associations and organizations due to the rise in mobile web usage by their constituents.  Smart families use Mobicip to help keep the quality of content intact while making mobile learning a safe, secure, family-friendly experience that everyone can enjoy. Mobicip.com’s mobile application software provides the most comprehensive online content filtering service to protect kids and teens’ mobile experience.

“As a father of two, I personally understand the concern families have about the quality of content their kids and teens may access on mobile devices” says Suren Rammasubu, founder and CEO of Mobicip.com.  “We created the most intelligent content filtering technology so parents could allow their kids to use popular sites like Google but be able to screen inappropriate content that is not family-friendly.  We are seeing more family-focused groups like PTAs, church groups, etc. recommend our service due to the comprehensive technology, ease of use and controls, which makes me a proud family man.”

Mobicip's service is being used by thousands of parents around the world, and by many school districts to enable safe mobile learning in and out of the classroom. Comal Independent School District Teacher, Ann Jeanette Patton, shares: “Had we not had a restricted internet service like Mobicip, I wouldn’t have allowed them (the mobile devices) in the room as a tool, because of the monitoring that would have had to have occurred and plus they couldn’t have taken them (iPod's) home. So, I very much (sic) strongly affirm that Mobicip is an integral part of this process."

“The Mobicip Safe Browser's intuitive design is easy-to-use. It looks almost identical to the preferred Safari browser resident on many Apple products, says Teresa DiFalco, a reviewer for Parents’ Choice.” “Searches on inappropriate content produce a simple ‘access is denied’ message and a link to the Mobicip website where a parent or administrator can, if they desire, change the filtering level. There are three age-appropriate levels: elementary, middle school, and high school.”

Mobicip’s Safe Browser app for kids and teens is available on the iPhone App Store, and the service is available at www.mobicip.com.

About Mobicip’s Online Content Filtering for Family-Friendly Mobile Use
Mobicip is the most powerful Internet filtering and parental control software designed specifically to work with mobile devices.  Parents, educators and family friendly groups use Mobicip’s custom web filtering so kids and teens can use the internet safely, securely and specific to their age, interests and parent/educator requirements.  The Safe Browser iPhone app is the most popular parental control app on the iPhone App store.  Kids are mobile – parents use Mobicip to ensure their mobile kids are safely using their mobile devices, even without supervision.  Learn more about Mobicip at www.Mobicip.com.

If you are at ISTE 2010, make sure to stop by this ISTE Unplugged event on Tuesday, Jun 29 at 10:30 am.

Title: Individualized Instruction and Learning Using the iPod Touch

Description:
Comal ISD and Grey Culbreth Middle have implemented iPod Touch-based mobile learning programs. Middle schoolers who participate in these programs are each given an iPod Touch that includes restricted Internet access, apps, music, documents, presentations and instructional videos that allow the students to learn on their own time outside of school hours. The panelists will discuss how the programs evolved from concept to reality, cover acceptable use policy, security and deployment management, and anecdotal evidence of the benefits derived by students participating in the program.

• Comal ISD in New Braunfels, TX, has implemented a 1:1 learning program using the Apple iPod Touch for its special education English language learners.
• Grey Culbreth Middle School in Chapel Hill, NC has implemented a similar program for the entire 8th grade class.
• Travis Allen from the iSchool Initiative will also participate in the session and bring a refreshing student perspective.
• The session is hosted by Suren Ramasubbu (HuffPost blogger and CEO of Mobicip.com)

Panelists:

Suren Ramasubbu http://www.huffingtonpost.com/suren-ramasubbu

Sandra Shelton http://www.comalisd.org/mobile_learning/index.html

Travis Allen http://www.ischoolinitiative.com

Susan Wells http://www.youtube.com/greyculbreth

Click here to join the Elluminate room

Our May newsletter (copied below) was sent over the weekend, generating an overwhelming response in referrals, phone calls and emails. Thank you parents for your wonderful feedback!

Schools Choose Mobicip for Safe iPod Touch Use.  Mobicip is most popular among parents as an Internet filtering and parental control service for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad. However, the original intent behind Mobicip was to create a safe Internet for K-12 schools for mobile learning. This vision has been borne out by the increasing adoption of the iPod Touch as a mobile learning device by hundreds of schools across the US. In the last few months, we had the unique opportunity to work with pioneering schools, administrators and teachers who are implementing 1:1 learning programs based on the iPod Touch. A 1:1 learning program is where the school provides a learning device with instructional activities and curriculum-aligned content to each student for use in the classroom and at home. That Mobicip has been adopted by these pioneering schools is a testament to how critical filtering is for schools, and to the effectiveness of Mobicip's dynamic filtering engine and Internet activity monitoring. Does your child's school use mobile devices for education?  Let us know so Mobicip can make sure your kids have access to a safe, secure and educational Internet. Email Reports Now Available For Premium Users Premium Mobicip.com subscribers can now opt to receive reports of Internet activity via email. Simply login at www.mobicip.com and navigate to Settings > Email Reports to enable the option. To upgrade to Premium, login at Mobicip.com and click Upgrade Now. Safe Browser Update 2.5.1 - iPad Support! The latest update of Mobicip's Safe Browser is now available for download from the iPhone App Store. The update features Support for the iPad Blazing performance next only to Safari Reorderable bookmarks Bug fixes making the Safe Browser one of the most reliable and fully functional Safari Mobile-alternatives available on the App Store. Yes, the update is absolutely FREE! We have listened to your requests and the next update we are working on includes full-screen browsing, bookmarks syncing, visual bookmarks or weblinks, and the ability to exclude local IP Addresses. If there are other features you want to highlight to us, please send a quick note to support@mobicip.com. Sincerely Mobicip.com Crew become a fan on Facebook follow us on Twitter

Hear'em Say It "Even with the free account, Mobicip offers more than enough protection that parents can rest easy. For a mere $5, you can keep your kids from accidentally (or intentionally) wandering into the Web's red-light districts. I'm sold." Rick Broida - CNET "Mobicip allows us to unleash the web on these (iPod Touch) devices, address parental control wishes and let our students learn in and out of school, both on their terms and parent/educator’s terms." Dr. Brant Myers, Superintendent, Jim Ned Indep. School District "I haven’t the faintest idea how all the technical voodoo works to block/allow websites so I’m grateful they’ve kept the parental account features simple. A fabulous product." The iPhone Mom.com   Mobicip Protects iPods at Comal ISD Mobicip for iPad Useful Links Watch Demo Frequently Asked Questions Need Help / Report Problem User Community Forum   Top Blog Posts How To Setup Parental Controls on iPhone, iPod Touch & iPad Five Must-Have iPhone Apps Mobicip Ensures Safe Student iPod Use in Schools

A New York Times article quotes " Young children think with their fingers and the "Toy of the Year" award goes to the iPad".   

The iPad's intuitive interface is truly a winner among kids. There are about 140,000 affordable software which include some tried-and-true children's options. Anyone who used iPod or iPhone screens to sketch/draw, Brushes is an app adapted for the larger screen iPad to let children develop their artistic skills.Reading stories becomes an experience when Dr.Suess or Mercer Mayer interacts with your child through the iPads page size screen through the eBooks. And the list goes on...

The iPad's long battery life (approx. 10 hrs) is another plus! Kids do not have to panic about the device dying while taking a test at school or using it in an interactive classroom session. 

Nowadays, Parents are always looking for electronic babysitters like iPhone so they can do their work or prepare a meal. For tweens, these devices are replacing TV/ DVD for entertainment because kids can choose to watch what they want. The iPad is no exception and is an ideal gadget for tweens and teens.

As an educational/entertainment gadget, kids can accidentally get exposed to harmful content on the internet. By wrapping the device with a CIPA-compliant( Child Internet Protection Act) filtering service like Mobicip, parents and educators can have peace of mind by making sure the harmful internet content is filtered before handing out the device to the kid. As the need and the desire for these devices are ever increasing, Mobicip for iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch ensures safe online experience for your entire family.

Kids deserve to use these mobile internet devices but in a safe manner! 

We are happy to announce that Mobicip's Safe Browser app for iPad is now available. Click here to download it from the iPad App Store. Tutorials, videos and demos for the iPad are coming soon!

Mobicip CEO, Suren Ramasubbu, in his article published in Huffington Post, talks about Apple's decision to police the App store, how ipod touches are adopted by schools as learning devices in K-12 education and Mobicip's key role in being an integral part of mobile learning.

Here's an excerpt:

"Apple's App Store is a runaway hit. At the same time, Apple has been labeled, for its mercurial and opaque App Store approval process, as "a joke", "inconsistent hypocrite", and "notorious for doing things on a whim without an explanation". The issue really hit developers when over 5000 apps with questionable and suggestive content were unceremoniously removed one fine day. Steve Jobs recently declared with characteristic flamboyance: "We do believe we have a moral responsibility to keep porn off the iPhone. Folks who want porn can buy and [sic] Android phone!"

To read the complete article, go to http://huff.to/asw5ke

Ann Jeanette Patton, a Comal Independent School District Teacher and an ELL and exploratory Spanish teacher at Mountain Valley Middle School in Canyon Lake, TX, gave a spontaneous and unsolicited testimonial about Mobicip's safe browser app!  Ms. Patton has over 30 years of teaching experience and we appreciate her taking the time to share the importance of educational institutions taking responsibility of their iPod Touches and iPhones educational programs so their students can safely use their mobile devices to learn.  Mobicip’s dynamic content filtering allows kids and teens to safely learn, love and use the mobile web - anytime, anywhere.

Ms. Patton shares: “I would like to comment on the importance of a restricted internet service, not parental controls, but Institutional controls on what students can get access to. Had we not had a restricted internet service like Mobicip, I wouldn’t have allowed them in the room as a tool, because of the monitoring that would have had to have occurred and plus they couldn’t have taken them (iPod's) home. So, I very much strongly affirm that Mobicip is an integral part of this process."
 

Michael Dermody with Keeping Kids Safe Online blog recently wrote a review about Mobicip's safe browser.  Thank you Mike!  Here is a link to the original article: http://smartsafe.blogspot.com/2010/03/mobicip-safe-browser-review.html

Here is the article:

It's taken me a month or so to get to this but I finally got to spend some time with Mobicip.  Last month one of my readers turned me on to Mobicip and asked me to review it.  So here goes.

I try to start my reviews with a statement of my overall opinion.  I like Mobicip, more than SafeEyes Mobile.  Though I'm not going to rush out and get it for my kids because I've already purchased SafeEyes and Mobicip didn't outperform it enough for me to want to make the change.  For those of you who don't know what Mobicip is, it's a web browser for mobile devices like the iPhone and iPod Touch.  If you follow this blog, I have reviewed SafeEyes Mobile in the past.  Mobicip does the same thing though it behaves a little differently.

The big difference between Mobicip and SafeEyes Mobile is that SafeEyes is a program and Mobicip is both a program and a portal.  What does that mean?  When you install SafeEyes onto your device, all of it's settings are contained within the program itself.  It does not connect to any third party for updates or to get it's "instructions" for how and what to filter.  Mobicip does connect to a third party service and this has definite advantages and a few drawbacks.

The advantage of Mobicip and it's third party connection is that is receives it's "orders" from a central location sponsored by the company that makes Mobicip.  The settings it uses to filter objectionable content are a clone of the settings most schools use to protect students from bad stuff.  Instead of you deciding which sites should be blocked, you can rely on the same expertise that makes those decisions for schools (though you still have to put some time in).  It also gets updated whenever that master list gets updated so your filter list will always be current.  This functionality alone is a huge plus.

The downside of connecting to a third party is that it affects browsing speed, though speed drops were seldom and the amount only slight.  Before you get to any internet site you have to first travel through Mobicip's site for the filtering to work.  The busier their site is, the longer it takes you to get through. But I have to be honest with you,  I used it at various times of day and I never noticed much of a performance hit.

Another cool thing about Mobicip is that it looks exactly like Safari, the browser that comes on iPhones/iPods.  SafeEyes has it's own browser that looks different.  If your child is embarrassed by not having the same browser his/her friends have, then this should do the trick.  Except for a splash screen that appears for about 2 seconds when the program is opened, there is no way to tell you aren't using Safari.

Mobicip's main features include:

    * Real-time Internet content filtering
    * Data encryption for added security over public WiFi
    * Simple setup using predefined web filter configurations used in schools
    * Easy, intuitive filtering administration
    * Support for 3G, EDGE, Home WiFi, Public WiFi (including hotspots that require purchase or agreement)
    * Safari-like User Interface, including pinch and zoom, bookmarks, tabs, landscape view, etc
    * Operates with no load on the device and no noticeable delay.

The control panel for parents is pretty easy to use.  After downloading Mobicip, the app immediately walks you through creating a Mobicip account and setting filtering settings at different levels. Ideally, the setup should be done by whoever will administrate the account so that the account will not be editable by your child. The account settings and control decisions are made by the administrator (you) at mobicip.com, which also has a very simple and easy to use website. You don't need not be an expert to set up and edit the account.

The best part about Mobicip is the price.  $4.99 as opposed to $19.99 for SafeEyes.

All in all, Mobicip worked well, and is something I would definitely recommend to any concerned parent.  But make sure that once Mobicip has been installed on your child’s iPhone, the Safari browser has been taken off via the restriction settings. Otherwise there really is no point to downloading it.  If you need help disabling Safari, turn to Google and search on "disable Safari iPhone".  That's how I figured it out.

Thousand Oaks, CA, March 18, 2010 (PressReleasePoint) -- Mobicip.com, the leading internet safety and parental control service for mobile devices like the iPhone and iPod Touch, today announced the official launch of its service in Europe, giving parents a valuable tool to protect their kids online.

Mobicip’s Safe Browser app is one of the most popular apps in the iPhone app store. Preferred by both parents and educators, the app provides an alternate browser that is used to replace the Safari Mobile browser. Built on the same WebKit platform that Safari Mobile is based on, the browser clone provides the same multi-touch browsing experience, albeit keeping users safe from inappropriate content through powerful cloud-based dynamic filtering. Premium subscription to the Mobicip’s parental control service allows parents to configure filters and monitor Internet activity remotely.

Mobicip’s dynamic content filtering app and service have been popular among parents and schools in the US and has been adopted steadily by parents in the UK and other countries in Western Europe. In response to popular demand from these users, Mobicip.com has setup cloud servers in Europe to ensure that users in Europe experience the same zippy performance that US-based parents and educators enjoy.

"Mobicip.com has been leading the way in providing a safe, secure and educational surfing for kids and teens on mobile devices like the iPhone and iPod Touch" says Suren Ramasubbu, Founder and CEO of Mobicip.com. "Our focus on providing a quality user experience so youth are not restricted from being mobile with mobile devices, but parents and educators rest assured they can surf with smart filtering. Our customer service has been appreciated by parents and schools alike. The biggest reward has been the word-of-mouth referrals by parents and educators that has enabled us to grow virally across the globe!”
The Safe Browser app is available on the iPhone App Store, and the service is available at www.mobicip.com. The full press release is available at www.mobicip.com/press.

About Mobicip Web Filtering and Dynamic Parental Control Software
Mobicip is the most powerful internet filtering and parental control software designed specifically to work with mobile devices. Parents and Educators use Mobicip’s custom web filtering so kids and teens can use the Internet safely, securely and specific to their age, interests and parent/educator requirements. The Safe Browser iPhone app is the most popular parental control app on the iPhone App store. Learn more about Mobicip atwww.mobicip.com.

Rod Gustafson, ParentPreviews.com founder, has written an article about Mobicip's safe browser app on the Parent Previews blog.  Thank you Rod! Here is a link to the original article: http://www.parentpreviews.com/the-big-picture/post/how-do-i-filter-the-internet-on-my-iphone-itouch/

Here is the article:
A while back I noticed there was little in the way of filters parents could use on the iPhone or iTouch—and virtually nothing for other phones that aren’t considered smart phones, yet still have web browsers. However, last week I discovered a company that is offering a replacement web browser for Safari on the iPhone/iTouch.

Apple does have some parental control features built into their portable devices (and I’m assuming the iPad will offer something similar), but these options are still fairly basic. You can only turn certain apps, like Safari, on and off. There is no way to filter the Internet in real time.

Fortunately a company called Mobicip (just don’t ask me how to pronounce it) makes a replacement web browser for iPhone’s Safari that has built in content filtering. What that means is you can purchase their browser (through Apple’s app store for $4.99), install it on your phone and then disable Safari through the parental control features.

I haven’t tested Mobicip, but if one of you gives this a try, please use our comment link at the bottom of this article and tell us about your experience. Another app called “Safe Eyes Mobile” is available through the app store, but it costs $19.99 and doesn’t have very positive reviews. (We have used Safe Eyes for Mac in our home in the past with mixed results—it filters basic content just fine, but was clunky on OS X and is still lacking many essential features that are on the PC version.)

Now let’s hope some solutions for Internet filtering appear for the dozens of other phones out there!

Rick Broida, a technology writer for nearly 20 years, has written an article about Mobicip Kids-Safe Browser on CNET blog. Thank you Rick! Here is a link to the original article: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10462803-1.html

Here is the article: 

There are any number of ways to childproof your PC, to rope off the objectionable areas of the Internet. But what about the kids' iPhones and iPod Touches? Safari offers no parental controls to speak of, no filtering or monitoring or search guards.

Enter Mobicip Safe Browser ($4.99), which offers a familiar Web interface, but with a raft of protections designed to keep kids safe.

The app looks and functions almost exactly like Safari, so there's almost no learning curve for kids already accustomed to the built-in browser (which, FYI, you can lock out by venturing into Settings > General > Restrictions). One small gripe: it can't import any existing bookmarks.

Mobicip does, however, offer a convenient, kid-friendly home page with quick links to sites like Britannica, Google, HowStuffWorks, and Wikipedia.

The browser relies on Mobicip's servers to filter inappropriate URLs and search results. Parents can choose from three predefined filtering levels: elementary, middle, and high school.

If you want more granular control, consider signing up for a Premium account, which for $9.99 annually lets you blacklist/whitelist specific sites, block specific categories (chat, shopping, violence, etc.), view activity reports, and manage multiple users and devices.

Even with the free account, Mobicip offers more than enough protection that parents can rest easy. For a mere $5, you can keep your kids from accidentally (or intentionally) wandering into the Web's red-light districts. I'm sold.