Avira buys into social controls for kids

German security suite maker Avira has bought SocialShield, which makes software that enables parents to monitor the social-network activity of their children.

Avira said in a prepared statement last week that it intends to incorporate SocialShield into the free version of its security suite, which has around 100 million people actively using it. SocialShield scans numerous social networks, including Twitter, Facebook, Google+, MySpace, and FormSpring, analyzes the activity it has access to, and alerts parents when red flags arise. The company did not reveal a timeline for integration.