Ashley Cho: Keeping Taupō families safe online

Ashley Cho (left) and team members Cameron Felton, Stewart Gillespie and Liam Delany. Photo / Supplied

The internet has come a long way since the first message was sent 50 years ago from a grey box the size of a fridge by a professor at the University of California.

These days the internet has a constantly growing range of applications including navigation, music, videos, home shopping, international communication, and banking.

However for all its advantages, the internet does have a downside. Cyberbullying, illegal content, computer viruses and identity theft are just some of the dangers that web browsers face. Many large corporates invest in filtering and virus protection systems to safeguard their employees from these risks. These systems are often expensive, making them out of reach for the average family or small business owner.

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Over the last year Taupō-based IT expert Ashley Cho has been working on a product to help solve this problem.

"Many of my customers would love to have a filter on their internet service," says Ashley. "They want to protect their children and staff from inappropriate content, and keep themselves safe from scammers. But the current options are far too costly for families and small business owners."

Ashley has created Ashley Cho Protect, a cloud-based internet service that filters out malicious and dangerous content. Customers purchase a modem that connects directly to the service, and filters are updated in real time. The other benefit is that the modem settings can be used to switch off the internet to specific devices.

"I have three teenage children, so I know how tricky it can be to manage screen time at home. Sometimes it's just easier to turn the internet off! This feature means my wife and I can watch Netflix, but my teenager can't access the internet from his room," says Ashley.

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Ashley has been working with computers since the age of 20. He set up his IT company in Taupō after moving down from Auckland 10 years ago.

"As a family we love to ski, so we moved to Taupō to be closer to the mountain. I've always been interested in computers, so I decided to set my business up here. I started with one employee and we've now grown to five staff members," he says.

Ashley's business focus is on having an approachable team.

"I made a conscious decision not to have a reception area. That means clients can talk directly to the team member who is working on their job. They can ask questions, and sometimes even learn how to solve the issue themselves. It's a great way to build long-term relationships with customers."

For more information on Ashley Cho Protect, visit https://protect.ashleycho.com.