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Parent's Guide to Internet Safety

NCJ Number
179127
Journal
Compiler Volume: 19 Issue: 1 Dated: Summer 1999 Pages: 14-17
Date Published
1999
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This pamphlet is intended to help parents understand the complexities of on-line child exploitation, the signs that their child might be at risk on-line, the actions they should take if they suspect that their child is communicating with a sexual predator on-line, and actions to minimize the chances that an online exploiter will victimize the child.
Abstract
The guide was prepared by the Federal Bureau of Investigation from actual investigations involving child victims, as well as investigations in which police officers posed as children. The discussion notes that signs that a child may be at risk o- line include the child's spending large amounts of time on-line, the parent's finding pornography on the child's computer, and the child's receiving phone calls from men the parent does not know or making phone calls to numbers the parent does not recognize. Recommended actions include talking openly with the child about the suspicions, reviewing what is on the child's computer, using the caller ID service to determine who is calling the child, and purchasing a device that shows telephone numbers dialed from the home phone. Actions to prevent on-line exploitation include talking with the child about sexual victimization and potential online danger, keeping the computer in a common room in the house, using blocking software or other parental controls, and maintaining access to the child's on-line account. Additional recommendations, list of definitions, and list of sources of further information