To monitor or not to monitor kids online -- that's a question millions of parents face. On
one hand, software for monitoring kids' online behavior is a relief for ever-busy Moms and Dads. On other hand, parents should be very careful when relying on technology in such a delicate matter as parental control. Teens can freely access Internet from computers at school, at their friends' homes and in public places such as libraries and even from cell phones and video game consoles. Internet is everywhere, that is why kids and teenagers (and their parents, too) should be well aware of its dangers to avoid them.Here are some figures from telephone survey made by Pew Internet and American Life Project:
65% of all parents and 64% of all teens say that teens do things online that they wouldn't want their parents to know about.
These "things" usually means visiting sites parents find "questionable" or "inappropriate", for example, so-called adult content. And, of course, chatting online.
What kids say in chat rooms, whom they communicate with and what they post on web logs and other public Internet places can get them into much more serious trouble than just viewing porn.
81% of parents of online teens say that teens aren't careful enough when giving out information about themselves online and 79% of online teens agree with this.
Sometimes teenagers post online their first and last names, postal addresses, phone numbers, pictures and give lots of personal information about themselves. It enables a predator easily identify and find this teen.
Unfortunately, sex predators teem in cyberspace. Sometimes they immediately start sexually explicit conversations with children. If a kid or a teen is forewarned and taught to end such a conversation immediately, he or she is relatively safe, except for moral damage from such a talk.
But there are others. They gradually allure their future victims by attention, affection, kindness, and even gifts. These individuals usually devote much time, money, and energy to this process. They listen to childrenand pretend to empathize with their problems. They even are aware of latest music, hobbies, and interests of children. Some time later this person may succeed in arranging a face-to-face meeting with kid -- you can guess what for.
Such crimes are on rise, so there are now even special units where law enforcement officers pose as children in chat rooms to lure predators into a trap.
The problem is so serious that Federal Bureau of Investigation had to launch Crimes Against Children (CAC) Program in 1997. So every parent should read and memorize tips from "A Parent's Guide to Internet Safety" http://www.fbi.gov/publications/pguide/pguidee.htm There are rules any teen should learn by heart: don't believe everything they are told on-line, never reveal your name, age, birthday, graduation year, nickname or any other personal information while chatting.
