Internet Predator Awareness

The Internet is a powerful and very useful tool. It can be used to find information, to do research, to buy products, to book appointments, and to talk to friends and relatives all over the world. It is a world of limitless communication possibilities. And that is precisely why it can also be dangerous, especially to children and teens, if parents are not actively aware of how to protect them. Through chat rooms, e-mail and instant messaging, people everywhere are using the computer as a means of talking to one another. It’s particularly appealing to teenagers, because they can assume an alter ego in their most vulnerable and insecure stage of life; physical aspects of the “real world” such as age, sex, skin colour, body image, and reputation, don’t apply in cyber-space. Unfortunately, the same rules apply to closet pedophiles, sexual predators and kidnappers that troll Internet chat rooms looking for potential victims, using sophisticated manipulation techniques under the guise of the same chat lingo that your teen speaks. Add to that the disturbing and intrusive pornographic advertisements that pop up when visiting a harmless web site, and it seems almost impossible to know how to protect your child while still allowing them reap the many benefits of the World Wide Web.

The FBI released the frightening statistic that at every day, at least one adult leaves home with intentions to meet personally with a minor child they have met on-line. The high profile case of 12-year-old British schoolgirl Shevaun Pennington, who ran away to meet her chat room boyfriend, known pedophile Toby Studabaker, 31, of Michigan, has recently brought to light the problem of internet safety awareness. For many parents, this incident has come as a wake-up call, and simply warning children about the dangers of online chat rooms, as Shevaun’s parents did, may not be enough. Fortunately there are many courses of action that you can take to promote safety, and if you don’t know exactly what your teen is doing on the Internet, you need to get involved now.

The Predators
Where is your child the most safe? At home, right? What most parents don’t realize is how many criminals have easy access to their home…and their children. Hiding behind a chat alias or “nickname,” Internet predators lurk in the same chat rooms and message boards that kids and teens use. These deceivers range in character from closet pedophiles, developing an interest in children, to highly organized and skilled child pornography rings.

These prowlers have a number of different routines that they use to lure kids into trusting and communicating with them. They will at first learn to disguise themselves by listening-in to teen chat room conversations, studying the language and lingo that they use. After creating a chat profile and nickname that would sound interesting or appealing to a teen girl or boy, they will then look for the perfect victims.

E-Predators, as in real-life predators, usually prey on kids who look or sound vulnerable, and have low self-esteem. These expert manipulators know that many teens talk about their problems in chat rooms, and they become a sympathetic friend who gives advice, therefore gaining their trust.

Another well sought-out target is the lonely child, as they have a need for love and attention that the predator will seem to provide. Some predators look for the underprivileged, and make offers of money and gifts, sometimes promising them fame and a career.

Once they have gained the trust of their victim, they may start to pursue them further, sometimes sending them explicit images to see how they’ll react, or suggesting they meet. Your teen will either be disgusted or they’ll be curious, and part of this depends on what they know of Internet dangers. If they’re aware of who predators are, what they do, and what is and isn’t appropriate Internet conduct, they may be able to avoid these situations.

What do I do?
Before talking to your teen about Internet safety, take time to learn how it works, particularly chat rooms and instant messaging. Most kids assume that their parents don’t even understand what they are doing on the computer, so they basically have free reign when surfing and chatting. Most parents don’t have the time to be sitting with their teen while they are using the computer, but there are many easy precautions that you can take to educate and protect your child.

1. Open the lines of communication. Keeping the computer in a central area of the house, like the living room, is an easy way to start. Family members may spend more time surfing the web together, and talking about what they are looking at and who they are chatting with online. This also allows parents to better monitor what someone is looking at, even if they’re just walking by.

2. Be computer literate. Making sure you are up to date with the Internet is more important than most parents think. Take the time to learn about your computer, your Internet service provider, and some of the things that your child can be exposed to online. Surfing” for just 30 minutes can give you an idea of what you are dealing with.

3. Agree on Internet Rules. Once you know, understand, and can explain what can go wrong when talking to people on the Internet, you should establish a set of rules with your kids. The following are some important guidelines to follow:

• Do not give out personal information such as your address, telephone number, work address/telephone number, the name and location of your school, or any other personal information without a parent’s permission.

• Never agree to get together with someone you "meet" online without first checking them out to the best of your ability, and then checking with a parent. If they agree to the meeting, be sure that it is in a public place and only with a parent or guardian present.

• Do not send anyone your picture unless you are sure of whom you are sending it to. Always check with your parents first.

• Do not respond to any messages that are mean in any way or make you uncomfortable. It is not your fault if you get a message like that. Tell a parent right away so that they can contact the service provider.

• Do not give out your Internet password to anyone (even your best friends) other than your parents.

Be sure to use care when explaining these risks, as children are more likely to be responsive to a positive and fun approach to safety, rather than a list of “Do nots”. You may also want to set up boundaries such as how long they can be online everyday and at what time, and what are appropriate and inappropriate places to visit. If you spend this initial time, you can instil tools of common sense that your teen can utilize independently. An important rule for parents: Don't allow your kids to buy things on the Internet and don't ever give them your credit card number.

4. Use the tools available to minimize the risk of predators. Internet access can be password protected if you don’t want your children surfing when you’re not home. You can buy monitoring and/or filtering programs such as “Net Nanny,” which will help you limit and keep track of sites your child visits, what they talk about and with whom. An even easier tip is checking the “history” in your Internet browser, which is a log of all the recent sites your computer has visited. However, invading a teenager’s privacy to that degree may cause some frustration for both parties, and there are other options available. Rather than letting teens participate in random chat rooms, you may want to set up an account for them on an Instant Messaging program, such as MSN Messenger. You can enter the e-mail addresses and contacts of friends and family members, and place a setting that restricts anyone outside that list from messaging your child. This way you can be sure that your child will be talking only to people he or she knows.

Enjoying the Internet
It is important not to forget the positive aspects of the net, as it can be so useful and convenient to today’s teens in doing homework, researching and communicating. Just make sure that your kids know that the values you instilled in them when they were younger, such as “don’t talk to strangers,” still apply in cyberspace. And there is hope for a safer Internet environment. Many law enforcement agencies are taking steps to strip Internet predators of their anonymity. By posing as children in chat rooms and agreeing to meet with the offender in public, police can catch these offenders and usually convict them with proof from their computer hard drive.

Take the time to understand the dangers of the Internet and the safety features that are available to you, and to talk to your teen about it.

For more information please visit:
http://www.childnet-int.org/
http://www.chatdanger.com/home/
Source: The Guardian Angel.com (www.theguardianangel.com)