Add-on to help protect children using popular site

Californian software developer, PBHLLC, and IP Marketing, an online marketer, have unveiled a toolbar designed to help children and parents track activity on a child's MySpace page.

The MySpace Guardian toolbar notifies the user of additions to their MySpace page and provides a quick reference to sexual predator information, including a pictorial search of sex offenders and maps of sex offenders in their neighbourhood. Parents or children can access the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's (NCMEC) Cybertip line to notify the authorities of any suspected sex offender activities.

"Children benefit greatly from being online, but they can also be targets of sexual exploitation," said Carl Perkins, president of PBHLLC. "We believe that the MySpace Guardian Toolbar gives kids a way to stay in touch with their MySpace page and have quick access to resources to help protect them from sexual predators."

The MySpace Guardian toolbar also gives parents tools, including the ability to search directly from the toolbar in their browser from the search engine of their choice and make or receive Skype calls directly from their browser.

"The threat from online predators is very real," said Charles Lloyd, president of IP Marketing. "According to the Department of Justice, one in five kids received a sexual approach or solicitation over the internet in the past year. We believe that by enabling kids with a useful tool to manage their MySpace account, this brings awareness of sexual predators and will enable them to have a much safer online experience."