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In the Internet Age, the Dangers Your Children Face Don't Stop at the Front Door

Posted on: Saturday, 18 February 2006, 15:00 CST

By Beth O'Malley, The Sedalia Democrat, Sedalia, Mo.

Feb. 18--It may be hard for some parents to believe, but a child sitting at home can be in as much danger as a child talking to a stranger in a park. Teenagers using the Internet can be approached in chat rooms by strangers, who may want to entice children to meet them or try to get personal information to steal their identity, said Craig Chval, unit chief for the Missouri attorney general's high tech and computer crime unit. "The biggest danger and the biggest fear is when children make contact with predators that they meet online," Mr. Chval said. The Internet can have a "surreal aspect," said Mr. Chval. "You think of your kids in your own house ... they're safe." Ruth Stanley attended a seminar the Cole Camp school district held about Internet safety. Ms. Stanley said her two grandchildren, 11 and 15, come to her house in Cole Camp to use the computer. She is concerned about "all the stalkers ... the people that get on the Internet and search out these young people." She tells her grandchildren not to chat on the Internet. Children may not realize they are revealing senstive information. For example, if a child says she walks to the library every Wednesday, and the person knows what town she lives in, it would be easier to find the child, she said. "Little stuff like that, that kids don't think about" can be dangerous, Ms. Stanley said. Parents can monitor Internet use, but should understand "there is no way of absolutely ensuring the child's safety," Mr. Chval said. To help children recognize the threat strangers can pose even through a computer, parents should talk to them about not giving out personal information -- even a last name and hometown. Children need to understand "the risks are real," Mr. Chval said. A 2000 survey of teenagers found that one in five had been sexually solicited or approached on the Internet, according to the Web site www.netsmartz.org. Pettis County Prosecuting Attorney Jeff Mittelhauser said he has prosecuted one case where a man tried to entice a child to meet him in November 2001. The child, in this case, was actually the Livingston County sheriff, posing as a teenage girl. The defendant, Clarence K. Bouse, was convicted of three counts of attempted sexual misconduct involving a child, a class A misdemeanor. Mr. Bouse never followed through on attempts to meet the "girl" he was chatting with. Monte Richardson, a detective with the Sedalia Police Department said parents should be wary of the Internet, and should report suspicious chats or e-mails their child receives. Children should understand they "wouldn't talk to a stranger at the front door, so don't talk to a stranger on the Internet," Detective Richardson said. Kristen Loucks, 17, said she has had people try to chat with her. Someone with a screen name she doesn't recognize will say they saw her recently. "I don't mess with that," Miss Loucks said. The computer at Miss Loucks' house is in the family room; her parents won't let her have one in her own room. "I'd probably use it a lot more," Miss Loucks said. Ryan Hall, 15, and his brother Brett Hall, 16, said they use the Internet for hours every day. While both use chat programs, neither has ever had a stranger try to chat with them. Although the teens' computers are in their rooms, their parents have installed parental security software on them. Ryan said he knows how to disable the parental security, but doesn't; that wouldn't be right. Mr. Chval said such software can help parents block sites and even monitor their children's Internet usage, but parents should still talk to children about how they use the Internet. omalley@sedaliademocrat.com

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Sedalia Democrat, Sedalia, Mo.

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Source: The Sedalia Democrat (Sedalia, Mo.)

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