What You Don’t Know Can Hurt Your Child

Posted by Ken

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I haven’t seen a video that demonstrates so well the online risks our children face today. The North Carolina Department of Justice has done just that by putting together a very informative video that depicts some common scenarios of how sexual predators and teens interact.

One of the troubling things this video brings to light is that teens oftentimes willingly seek out the thrill of meeting up with someone they’ve only known online. It also shows that even though your family computer may be in an open area of the house, it does you, the parent, no good if you don’t pass by it from time to time to see what they’re really doing. Even then, you should always be active in asking them to show you what they’re doing.

It’s not prying—it’s caring and protecting your child when you do this.

These criminals are not the old man in the grey overcoat waiting on the playground. These are businessmen, the person sitting in the cube next to you at the office, single or married with children, or your next door neighbor. So forget about trying to figure out who to avoid by basing your decision on how a person looks.

Here’s a brief summary of the tips you’ll get from this video:

Children should not use online profiles offered by Web sites and/or services (nor should adults, for that matter). Kids don’t know not to provide revealing information about themselves that can help predators learn about them.
Avoid sending photographs, even seemingly innocent ones. It encourages the criminal to ask for more.
Keep the computer in an open area within your home, NOT in his or her room behind a closed door.
Explain to your child that computer use is not confidential.
Have access to and regularly monitor your child’s e-mail account. Of course, you’ll want to notify them that you’ll be doing this.
Check your browser Internet history to learn where your child has visited.

The video can be viewed online or a copy could be mailed to you by request. Check out the site for details.

View the video