Parenting Analytics App Identifies 30,000 Online Issues Including Bullying and Drug Use

VISR, a predictive wellness startup, has announced that its app has identified and confirmed with parents over 30,000 issues online concerning their kids safety and wellness. 

 

Powered by data and machine learning, VISR is an app that alerts parents to issues their kids face online. By analyzing the online activities and interactions of kids - incoming and outgoing - VISR alerts parents to emerging issues, allowing them to be addressed before they become larger and more difficult to resolve. VISR currently supports Instagram, Gmail, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest, with more platforms coming soon.

 

The statistics offered by VISR highlight today’s reality that parents and kids are facing global technology safety challenges including bullying, sexting, and increased mental health concerns. 

 

The company reports that 35 percent of 11-17 year olds are bullied online, a percentage that has doubled since the year before. An estimated 70 percent of students have witnessed cyberbullying, believing that it is easier to get away with bullying online than it is in person. Social media has also given way to increased anxieties and pressures in children and adolescents.

 

VISR’s technology is powered by an analysis engine that combines machine learning, text analysis and image recognition technology. To date, VISR has analyzed 10 million posts employing nearly 100 natural language processing "classifiers" across 23 separate alert categories, to pick up critical signals and nuances indicating if a parent needs to be notified. 

 

When a possible issue is identified, parents are immediately notified through VISR’s family dashboard; helping them understand the issue at hand, as well as their child’s behavioral trends and patterns over time. Parents can also respond to alerts, allowing VISR to tailor future alerts based on their preferences and parenting style. Employing learning algorithms, the system gets smarter and more relevant to parents over time.