How can we as parents protect our children from pedophiles
that are roaming the internet?
~ Very Simple Guidelines to Internet Safety~
Pedophiles have a new playground on which to attract children -- we call it the "Internet". Kids love computers, and "talking" on the internet is pretty much anonymous . That combination is potentially dangerous. There have been so many media reports on children who have been "lured" over the Information Superhighway. Pedophiles can very easily assume a fake identity, can be from anywhere in the country. They can be whom ever they want, when ever they want, where ever they want, and they are experts at manipulating our children.
"It really doesn't take us long to connect with a pedophile, usually only two or three minutes," said Sgt. Nick Battaglia, who patrols the information superhighway each day for the San Jose Police Dept. "They are out there waiting to prey on these children."
The risks to children who use the Internet can include:
* Exposure to sexual or violent material
* Arrangement of a meeting that leads to molestation or abduction
* Harassing messages
As parents we need to protect our children from these child predators. Here are some guidelines that will help you do just that.
* Give your child the important personal safety knowledge that will keep them safe from child predators in any situation, including playgrounds, malls, your neighborhood, and the Internet.
* If you are not, you should become more computer literate. Spend time with your child, have him/her show you around the internet. Be aware of what your child is doing while on-line. Most internet service providers (ISPs) offer ways to block your child from entering certain types of areas. If your ISP does not offer this consider changing to one that does or invert in some software that will do the job.
* Keep your computer in a family type room so that you can monitor your child's use of on-line services, just as you would any of your child's entertainment activities.
* Have your child use a pseudonym or nick name as their "screen name". Do not allow them to use their real names.
* Advise your child that the people they talk to on-line may not be who they say they are. Anyone can say that they are a 12-year-old boy who likes computers.
* Instruct your child to never give out any personal information like their name, age, home address, phone number, or school names to anyone they talk to on-line.
* Do not allow your child to go into private chat rooms until you have checked them out completely. Sit with your child while they "chat" so that you can monitor the types of conversations that go on.
* Your child should never send pictures to someone that they have met on-line without getting your permission first.
* Advise your child not to arrange a face-to-face meeting with anyone without your permission. If they want to meet with someone you should monitor the meeting and make sure it is a public place, and go with them for this initial meeting.
* Advise your child to never respond to threatening or obscene messages. But instead to tell you about it, or show it to you.
* Set rules and guidelines for your child's computer use. Limit the time they can stay on, the places they can go.
Anonymous Sexual Abuse Recovery Inc. (Canada)