About Toontown

What the experts say: Online Safety and Cyberlaw expert Parry Aftab

"Toontown is fun and safe. It's rare that parents and kids can agree on anything online, but Toontown beats all the odds. It was designed with kids' safety and privacy at its core, not added as an afterthought. The safety features are integrated into every aspect of the game. Parents will appreciate that. And it's so much fun that kids won't notice how safe it is.

Not only did I test the game and its safety features, I asked my teen Internet safety experts, the Teen Angels, to put it to the test. According to my teen testers, it allows them to play games online without having to worry about interacting with strangers or receiving unwanted communications. And they had a blast playing the game. In fact, our teen testers enjoyed it so much that we couldn't get them to stop testing the game!

It's not easy being a parent with children online. There are real risks to our children's safety and privacy. We have to say 'no' to so many things they want to do online. How nice it is to be able to say 'yes' to what our children enjoy most without having to worry that they may be approached by strangers online or run into inappropriate content. With Toontown, we don't have to choose between giving our children permission to do what they enjoy most online - playing interactive games - and being safe anymore. It's a win/win... Something parents don't find every day.

And it's not just parents who are worried about online safety and privacy. Kids hate having to deal with inappropriate communications when they are trying to have fun online. They value their privacy and security almost as much as their parents do.

Toontown gives kids a chance to experience some of the best features of the Internet - interactivity and community - without worrying about the Internet's darker side."

Parry Aftab is the executive director or Wired Safety (www.wiredsafety.org), the world's largest online safety and help group and WiredKids.org (www.wiredkids.org) a site devoted to kids online issues and empowering children to use the Internet to make a positive difference in the lives of others. She is a security, privacy and cyberspace lawyer, as well as an author and child advocate. Recently more than 90% of her time is donated to Internet issues involving children and adults, ranging from protecting children from sex crimes online to helping adults avoid identity theft and fraud online. Her main focus is teaching good cybercitizenship, especially to young people. This includes cyberbullying and responsible use of technology. Parry is in demand as a public speaker, consultant and resource to the media worldwide. In addition, she is The Privacy Lawyer columnist for Information Week Magazine and runs a very popular blog at http://parryaftab.blogspot.com.

Parry is perhaps best known for combining sound practices, the law and the vision of empowering Internet and mobile users to enjoy the Internet safely, privately and responsibly. She has acted as a consultant to most of the children's Internet industry, helping them comply with the law, while improving the Internet experience for children. When children and the Internet are concerned, Ms. Aftab's name is the first mentioned.

Parry Aftab is a worldwide leader in the area of online safety and parent and child Internet education. As Executive Director of WiredSafety.org, the largest online safety and educational program in cyberspace, Ms. Aftab helps prevent and investigate cybercrime. Under its former name, her group was awarded the President's Service Award in October 1998 from the White House and Points of Light Foundation. Ms Aftab also works closely with law enforcement around the world to police the Internet and is part of the Home Office Cybercrime Task Force in the UK.

Useful information about Disney and Toontown Online

Since the launch of our first Internet site in 1995, The Walt Disney Internet Group has been committed to promoting both Internet safety practices for children and parental involvement in kids' online experiences.

Parents interested in additional online safety information can visit our website Safe Surfing With Doug, which provides kids and families with an entertaining and interactive way to learn valuable lessons about safe surfing.