Instant messaging on the computer has become the phone for today’s kids. Children spend hours chatting online with their friends and sometimes with strangers. A recent study found that one in five children online is approached by a sexual predator, a predator who may try to set up a face-to-face meeting.

· Predators have turned to the Internet to find their victims. By lurking in chat rooms and engaging in online conversations, Internet predators have the ability to disguise their identities. A 35-year-old man may pose as a 12-year-old girl, or a single mom in a chat room may actually be a married man.

· Predators are very good at extracting information. Many people, both adults and children, inadvertently provide information about themselves to predators.

Predators form relationships with their victims. In some cases over several months. The moment the predator suggests meeting, the unsuspecting and unsuspecting victim agrees to meet, sometimes never to be seen again.

Even random conversations can unknowingly get a child into trouble. An online conversation might look something like this:

Poohbear105: We won our softball game today!

Dillan955: Congratulations! Which team do you play in?

Poohbear105: I play for the Jonestown Wildcats.

Dillan955: Great, my team is the Centerville Sluggers. I play second base.

Poohbear105: I play third base

Dillan955: We haven’t started playing yet, it’s too cold here in NE Pennsylvania.

Poohbear105: I hate the cold. I am very happy to live in Florida.

Dillan955: Can’t wait for Tuesday, it’s our first game

poohbear105: Great! I also have a game on Tuesday

Poohbear doesn’t realize it, but he did tell Dillan what town he lives in and where he will be next Tuesday. He also told her what team he plays for and what position. It is quite simple to find out the game time. Poohbear might have a visitor at his next game.

Most children know more about the Internet than their parents. This knowledge gap keeps parents in the dark about their children’s online activities. As the statistics below show, parental supervision in cyberspace is dangerously lax:

· 20% of parents do not control their children’s use of the Internet at all.

· Only 52% of parents moderately supervise their children’s Internet use.

· An estimated 62% of teens report that their parents know little or nothing about their Web activities.

71% of all parents stop monitoring their child’s Internet use after the child turns 14, not knowing that 72% of all Internet-related missing children are 15 years of age or older.

Internet predators take advantage of the lack of responsible adult supervision of children using the Internet.

Your child may be in contact with an Internet predator if he shows any of the following warning signs:

download photos of strangers

Download pornographic images

You are very private about online activities and the people you talk to

· Quickly shut down the computer or switch software applications when someone enters the room

You receive unusual phone calls, gifts, or letters in the mail.

He spends countless hours on the computer, and his school grades have dropped.

Spend unsupervised time in chat rooms.

Use online accounts you don’t recognize or use multiple email addresses

Visit websites that deal with death, destruction, or other morbid topics

Wait until other family members are asleep or away from home before connecting

The key is to monitor your child’s Internet activity. Make sure you and your child know what to watch for on the Web. Remember, because of the anonymity the Internet offers, people you meet online may not be who they say they are. Encourage your children never to share personal information about themselves on the Internet.

Parents can protect their children by doing the following:

Familiarize yourself with the web browser your children are using and restrict the type of content (violence, sex, and language) that can be viewed.

· Create a password that only allows you to control your computer’s Internet settings, online content, and software that can be installed.

· Do not allow your child to have multiple email accounts or create accounts without your knowledge. You can insist that your children give you their email and chat room passwords. Internet accounts and primary screen names must be in her name.

· Do not allow your children to chat (instant message) during homework-related computer time.

· Emphasize that dangerous pedophiles use the anonymity offered by the Web to lure their victims.

· Encourage your children to create screen names and emails that do not reveal their personal information (name, age, school, etc.).

· Set some Rules for Safe Web Browsers. Review the rules with your child and post them by your computer.

Go online with your kids and find out who they instant message and/or chat with. Prohibit the use of private chat rooms as well as adult rooms.

If you cannot establish yourself as an administrator of your computer, someone else has been designated as an administrator. If the administrator is your child, you can regain control of your computer through your child’s user ID and password. Once you become the new administrator, you can control the Internet content and websites your child has access to.

· Install an operating system that makes you an administrator (for example, Windows XP or Mac OS X).

· Keep the computer in the family room so you can monitor your Internet use.

Make sure you know the identity of all the people in your contact and/or friends lists.

· Make sure your child knows never to divulge personal information online (eg, name, age, photos, gender, physical description, phone number, address, etc.).

· Set rules about which sites your children can and cannot visit. Enforce these rules and set time limits on computer use.

Emphasize that the rules you set are to protect them, not control them.

Tell your children that they have the right to monitor their computer use and that if you suspect there is a problem, you will randomly monitor their Internet activities.