Latest news with #BarkTechnologies
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Yahoo
Human trafficking is everywhere, especially here in GA. This new app will help you report it
Sex trafficking is a $10 billion industry, and it's happening everywhere. We've found a new app that is designed to make it easier to report traffickers to the police. Lala Appleberry said she eventually learned that her boyfriend - the man she trusted - was a trafficker. 'It started with hugging, touching, kissing, things like that. And it grew. It became more, the ask became more,' Appleberry said. 'I didn't realize it was boyfriend to trafficker. It was, 'This is my boyfriend and I'm going to help him' cause we live together and we're doing this together. I'm his Bonnie, he's my Clyde. He needs help, and he has helped me. Unfortunately, her story is very common. TRENDING STORIES: Pope Leo XIV: Who is the first American pope? Hall County teacher accused of having inappropriate relationship with middle schooler North Georgia paramedic accused of installing camera in ambulance office restroom 'This could be happening in your neighborhood and your bougie neighborhood in Milton, or Cobb County, or Johns Creek, or Peachtree City, or Buckhead, or Brookhaven. It is happening, it could be on your street, and you might not know,' said Titania Jordon, chief parent officer of Bark Technologies. Bark helps parents keep track of the online activity of their kids. Jordon was in Washington as details of Operation Burn Notice were revealed. The multi-agency undercover effort targeting sex trafficking nabbed 17 people in Henry County. 'There's a new app called Simply Report out. That helps to fight human trafficking. You know, unfortunately, the National Human Trafficking Hotline has left too many victims without help,' Jordon said. Simply Report helps users identify and report trafficking indicators to the authorities. 'It's going to empower those who are involved in trafficking, those victims and hopefully survivors, to be able to report without worrying that they're going to get arrested for being in this industry,' Jordon said. Here is how you can download the app: Apple, Google Play
Business Wire
29-04-2025
- Health
- Business Wire
Talkspace and Bark Technologies Partner to Equip Teens with Essential Mental Health Resources Right from Their Bark Phones
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Talkspace (NASDAQ: TALK), a leading online behavioral healthcare company, and Bark Technologies, the leader in online safety tech for kids, announced they will join forces to help families navigate the many challenges facing teens today. Starting May 1, this new partnership will make Talkspace's high-quality mental health resources available to Bark Phone and Bark app users, as well as provide an enterprise-level solution that leverages their unique capabilities. Talkspace complements Bark's advanced content monitoring, which helps families detect potential dangers in their children's online activities, putting mental health support at their fingertips by connecting teens (13+) to resources and tools that help them navigate today's emotional challenges. The need for mental health resources for young people has never been greater. 40% of high school students recently reported feeling debilitating hopelessness or sadness (CDC, The Youth Risk Behavior Survey Data Summary & Trends Report, August 2024). In addition, 1 in 5 youth had at least one major depressive episode in the past year, yet over half of them – nearly 3 million – did not receive the treatment they needed (Mental Health America, State of Mental Health, July 2024). Bark's proximity to online safety issues reveals similarly eye-opening data regarding the prevalence of mental health issues in young people. In 2024, Bark analyzed 7.9 billion activities across the most common online platforms kids frequent and found that 77% of teens experienced bullying and 43% of teens experienced symptoms of depression. 'Bark understands the complex ecosystem in which teens live today, and Talkspace therapists have direct insights into the day-to-day challenges teens face,' said Brian Bason, CEO of Bark. 'By partnering with Talkspace we now have a trusted resource for teens and their parents or guardians should they want professional support, and it can all take place right on their Bark device.' Talkspace Integration within Bark Every Bark Phone will be equipped with Talkspace, and Bark app users will be granted special access. Through this integration, teens can register with their email address and utilize Talkspace Go: Talkspace's extensive library of teen-appropriate self-guided exercises, content and videos — all of which are developed by licensed therapists and available at no cost when accessed from their Bark Phones. Talkspace therapy services are also available and can be activated with parental support 1. Live video sessions are covered in-network with many insurance plans, and require parental/guardian consent (which varies state-to-state). Talkspace matches members 13+ with a dedicated licensed provider that they can communicate with via messaging, virtual sessions, or a combination of the two. Talkspace has been recognized by Healthline and PsychCentral as the best online teen therapy service for messaging-based care. A Timely Solution for Schools, Districts, and Families As the teen mental health crisis intensifies, cities and school districts across the country have turned to Talkspace to provide free mental health support to teens. Similarly, over 3,700 school districts trust Bark for Schools to monitor student accounts to detect potential problems across Google Workspace, Office 365, and Chrome to help protect students online and in real life. Bark and Talkspace are both committed to helping provide online safety and promote mental wellness among K-12 school students. Now, schools, districts, and organizations can utilize Talkspace for its comprehensive suite of mental health services, including its core virtual therapy offering, and have the option to add Bark Phones and services within the same engagement. 'This partnership further demonstrates our commitment to addressing the teen mental health crisis through accessible mental health support, while together with Bark empowering parents and teens to take greater control of their safety and well-being,' said Jon Cohen, MD, CEO of Talkspace. About Talkspace Talkspace (NASDAQ: TALK) is a leading virtual behavioral healthcare provider committed to helping people lead healthier, happier lives through access to high-quality mental healthcare. At Talkspace, we believe that mental healthcare is core to overall health and should be available to everyone. Talkspace pioneered the ability to text with a licensed therapist from anywhere and now offers a comprehensive suite of mental health services, including therapy for individuals, teens, and couples, as well as psychiatric treatment and medication management (18+). With Talkspace's core therapy offerings, members are matched with one of thousands of licensed therapists within days and can engage in live video, audio, or chat sessions, and/or unlimited asynchronous text messaging sessions. All care offered at Talkspace is delivered through an easy-to-use, fully-encrypted web and mobile platform that meets HIPAA, federal, and state regulatory requirements. More than 179 million Americans have access to Talkspace through their health insurance plans, employee assistance programs, our partnerships with leading healthcare companies, or as a free benefit through their employer, school, or government agency. For more information, visit About Bark Bark is an online safety company that helps protect over 7 million kids at home and in more than 3,700 schools and districts across the U.S. Offering content monitoring, screen time management, location tracking, and more, Bark is the leading digital safety solution for parents, families, and schools. Products include the Bark app, the Bark Phone, the Bark Watch, the in-home web filter Bark Home, and the community give-back program Bark for Schools. Using highly sophisticated artificial intelligence, Bark's award-winning monitoring technology alerts families to concerning behaviors in a variety of categories, including bullying, suicidal ideation, threats of violence, sexual content, and online predation. Bark monitors more than 45 of today's most popular social media platforms and apps, as well as text messages, images, videos, chats, emails, and files. Visit to learn more about the company and its product offerings. 1 Parental/guardian consent requirements vary by state
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Yahoo
A day after TikTok launches new parental controls, digital safety expert shows a major flaw that would allow teens to bypass them
If you're the parent of a teen, you might have noticed that TikTok just announced new parental-control safety measures—including a meditative shut-down prompt that teens will face if they're scrolling past 10 p.m., as well as a way for the adult in charge to block their kid from the app during set times. That was on Tuesday. On Wednesday, a digital safety expert and mom to a 16-year-old demonstrated on social media just how easy it would be for a savvy (and even not-so-savvy) teen to bypass. "I can't believe that all the smart people working at TikTok think that the general population of parents will, A, accept this; B, use this; C, find this meaningful in any way, shape, or form," Titania Jordan, chief parent officer at online safety company Bark Technologies and author of a brand-new book about raising kids in the digital age, Parental Control, posted in the caption of an Instagram reel. "Seriously, what are they thinking?" The new parental-control features are designed to work within an existing Family Pairing safety framework, through which parents link their account with their child's to better monitor and control their use of the app. Some experts have already weighed in on the features with Fortune, with Jill Murphy of Common Sense Media calling them "a step in the right direction" while emphasizing they are not the only answer. "In general," she said, "parental controls are just not a set-it-and-forget-it solution.' Jordan, meanwhile, begins her new reel by declaring, "TikTok must think that every parent is just a complete idiot." She goes on to explain how a Google alert about the new safety features piqued her interest on Tuesday, prompting her to examine the details. "I read it over, it seemed super fluffy, especially the meditation part," she said. "Like, no, you're not going to get kids to meditate within Tiktok—especially if you've curated an addictive algorithm of things they are most interested in!" What she really wanted to investigate, though, was the new family pairing feature that "supposedly" gave parents more tools, such as controlling kids' time spent on the app. Jordan demonstrated how, to test it, she created the new TikTok account of a fictitious 15-year-old and then had that account follow her real adult account. She then linked her adult account to the fake teen account through the new pairing feature. "I was really hoping that TikTok finally did something right. They did not," she said, reporting that, within a few taps, the 15-year-old account was able to unlink the account that the parent, a.k.a. Jordan, had just linked. "No warning, no blocker, no 'Hey, you need a PIN code password to make this happen.' No permission needed." TikTok did not immediately respond to Fortune's request for comment about Jordan's reel, but we will update with any response. But TikTok's parental controls, Jordan concludes, "are the biggest load of you-know-what that comes out of a bull. You can do better, TikTok," she says. "It's not that hard." More on teens and smartphones: Exclusive: Prince Harry and 'The Anxious Generation' author talk social media and mental health Is teen social media use a crisis or moral panic? How 'big back,' 'fatty,' and other 'fatphobic' slang is damaging your teen's mental health This story was originally featured on
