Dangers are merely a click away

by State Sen. Sam Graves

As parents, we warn our children about talking to strangers. We tell them the dangers that are just outside our front door and continuously watch over them and protect them from harm.

Unfortunately, technology has created an environment where “bad people” can come into our home without ever knocking on our door or driving up to the local playground. In today’s world, the stranger is just a click away.

While computers and the Internet have enhanced many lives, it has also created opportunities for all types of crime — the most heinous of which is child pornography and pedophiles using the Internet to find their next victim.

If you don’t have a computer in your home, you may think you have nothing to worry about, that your children are protected. Think again. Nearly every single school in America is now equipped with a computer. Children can go to their local library and access the Internet and all it contains or they may have friends who have computers in their homes.

Today, we can find an Internet site for almost everything, and growing segments are sites just for kids, where they can use chat-rooms to speak with other kids around the block or around the world. Here they look for other kids just like them to share their interests or experiences. What they may never know is that the one kid they can identify with, the one who has the answers to all their problems, is actually a pedophile in search of his next victim.

Your child may innocently give information that can make him or her a target, or may even be persuaded to run away or to engage in other behavior that could threaten his well being.

Currently, we are looking for solutions to the growing problems of Internet crime involving children. This is one issue where there are no politics, only concerned parents and adults looking for ways to protect our children. Legislation, however, cannot take the place of the most important protective mechanism already in place — you, the parent.

If you have a computer at home, filtering software is the first step. You should also learn to chaperone your children’s activities on the Internet. Make sure they use the computer in a common place — not behind closed doors, but a place where you can easily monitor their actions. Also, make sure they speak only to people they know, friends and family. Tell them never to give out personal information, even if it may seem harmless.

Speak to your child’s school to find out what mechanisms they have in place to protect your child while on-line. Legislation will help in many ways to curb Internet crimes against children. Working together, we can ensure the safety of our children and our communities from the new high-tech criminal.