Fight Cybercrime With An Online Talk Show

By Author: Etienne A. Gibbs
Total Articles: 2
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Although the Internet basically provides everyone a positive experience, attacks against our personal privacy and security are reaching epidemic proportions. These cyber-attacks are occurring in our own homes and businesses. Our personal computers are being used as zombies to attack the computers of other people, their businesses, and our nation. Identity theft and assorted crimes committed online, commonly referred to as cybercrime, has grown to epidemic proportions.

As an average computer and Internet user, you may not be aware of these threats nor have any idea about the dramatically increasing risks you face when your computer is connected to the Internet. And when you do become victimized, sometimes it seems that there is nothing you, the average computer-and-internet user, can do to fight back.

As an Internet Safety Advocate and Educator, I am on a campaign for Internet safety awareness and protection. My mission is to bring critical awareness to you as individuals, families, and small business owners, and to provide access to the necessary tools and ongoing expertise to secure your computer and help you ...
... stay securely protected.

Using the same technology as one of the ways for me to fight back, I found it easy and extremely user-friendly to run an online talk show, thanks to an online service known as BlogTalkRadio. As an Internet Safety Advocate and Educator, I launched my online radio show as another venue by which to continue to fight cybercrime.

Debuting Saturday, July 5, 2008, my weekly radio is a mix of call-in listeners sharing their experiences and asking questions; guest speakers sharing their respective areas of expertise; and a solution-sharing segment that I call "Tactics, Techniques, and Tips. As an online talk show host, I am proud to share the benefits with my audience.

My radio show allows me to expand my cybercrime-fight abilities by allowing:

* both domestic and international audiences to participate;

* listeners anywhere in the world to listen at no cost to them;

* English-speaking listeners anywhere in the world to call-in at no cost to them; and

* each show to be recorded and archived as a podcast for listeners to review at their leisure.

I partnered with BlogTalkRadio.com because it is their new, one-click Flash-based Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) feature that enables my listeners to participate with my show directly from their Web browser without the need for long-distance fees or a traditional landline or wireless phone. This is a triple-win situation: I get to combat cybercrime; listeners get to share their experiences and ask their questions; and get a wider audience to spread their advertisement.

The online call-in feature is made possible through BlogTalkRadio.com's proprietary, integrated telecom-based back-end infrastructure. In fact, no software downloads are needed. Listeners who wish to participate during his live internet radio show must simply have a microphone connected to their computer and be logged onto the BlogTalkRadio site (registration is free) to connect directly with Etienne. Once those steps are completed, they can simply click a button on the show's web page to connect directly to me and share their experiences, good and bad, about staying safe online.

My online talk show can be found at www.BlogTalkRadio.com/StayingSafeOnline

Launched August 2006, BlogTalkRadio is a free, web-based radio talk show platform which allows any user with a phone and a computer to host a live, interactive radio show -- no downloads or extra equipment needed. Hosts call into the service by phone to broadcast. Each show can accommodate unlimited live listeners.

Upon completion of the live broadcast, it is automatically archived as a podcast. Since the company's launch, thousands of hosts have broadcast more than 82,000 shows. Notable guests on BlogTalkRadio such as Yoko Ono, Brad Pitt, John McCain, Brian DePalma and more appear on the Best of BlogTalkRadio page. Notable hosts include: Intel; Marla Cilley, the FlyLady, home and life organizer; Sun Microsystems; and the Department of Defense.

Currently, BlogTalkRadio has a monthly listenership of 3.2 million and broadcasts more than 450 new internet radio shows daily. Both listenership and shows broadcast grow exponential each month. To date, BlogTalkRadio has broadcasted more than 90,000 shows since its launch.

Companies and organizations that utilize BlogTalkRadio's private radio station offering, such as Sun Microsystems and the Pentagon now have the ability to host their own interactive shows using the AskTheHost feature.

© MMVIII, Etienne A. Gibbs, MSW