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Keeping Children Safe Online

 

Keeping your child safe online is becoming more difficult everyday.  The number of child predators posing as children online can be astounding and scary.  Let us take a look at some statistics:

 

  • One in five U.S. teenagers who regularly log on to the Internet say they have received an unwanted sexual solicitation via the Web. Solicitations were defined as requests to engage in sexual activities or sexual talk, or to give personal sexual information.
    - Crimes Against Children Research Center

 

  • 25% of children have been exposed to unwanted pornographic material online.
    - Crimes Against Children Research Center

 

  • 75% of children are willing to share personal information online about themselves and their family in exchange for goods and services.
    - eMarketer

 

  • Only approximately 25% of children who encountered a sexual approach or solicitation told a parent or adult.
    - Crimes Against Children Research Center

 

  • One in 33 youth received an aggressive sexual solicitation in the past year. This means a predator asked a young person to meet somewhere, called a young person on the phone, and/or sent the young person correspondence, money, or gifts through the U.S. Postal Service.
    - Youth Internet Safety Survey

 

  • Only 1/3 of households with Internet access are actively protecting their children with filtering or blocking software.
    - Center for Missing and Exploited Children

 

These are just a few of the statistics that compel us at PBG Computer and Network Services, to inform and assist parents and teachers about what we need to do to protect the health and innocence of our children. 

 

"What Can I Do To Keep My Child Safe Online?"

 

  • Get involved -- Know what your child is doing online at home and at school.  Be aware of when they are using the computer, who they spend time with online, what information they give out on their personal web pages (i.e. Myspace), what programs they have installed, and what websites they visit.  Ignorance is bliss.  Many children and youth just assume that the person they are chatting with is who they say they are.  Child predators are masterminds of deception.

 

  • Make using the computer a public thing -- Keep the computer(s) in a public area of the house.  Do not allow children or youth access to a computer in their room, basement, or other non-communal parts of the house.  This will help you stay involved with their activities online, and shows them that you are concerned for them and holds them accountable for what they do online.

 

  • Educate your children -- Social networking is the number one way online predators find their victims.  Large scale uses of social networking have taken off recently with the boom of Myspace users, but parents are often unaware that there are other ways that online predators can use social networking.  Who is your child chatting with on AIM (AOL Instant Messenger), MSN, Yahoo Chat?  Do you know that person?  What has your child told them?  With as little information as your child's school mascot, what mall they frequent, what sports they play at school, and a picture or description of them; a child predator can determine what school they go to and when a good time to confront them would be (after a softball practice for instance).  We need to educate our children and youth about the hazard in being an "open book" on the internet can be.  At the bottom of this page are a few links to resources you can use to help you with this.

 

  • Install Protective Software -- There are few software packages out there that are aimed at protecting children online.  The problem is that many of these fall short in one or more places (security, thoroughness, ease of use, stability).  We do recommend that you install a quality software package and know how to use it to protect your children.  A good quality software program is one that your child / youth cannot disable themselves, cannot access to change settings on, and one that you can easily view reports and make changes to.  Call us today and we can make a recommendation for your situation and even install it and give you instruction on basic use. 

 

Our children are the future of this country, let us do all we can to ensure that it is a bright one!