Transcript ONLINE SAFETY FOR KIDS & TEENS

Joseph Lesniak
Assistant District Attorney
(610) 891-4052 or
[email protected]
For Your Consideration…
“Bullying poisons the
educational environment and
affects the learning of every
child.” (Olweus)
Subtle and Not-So-Subtle
Ways to Bully
 Subtle Intimidation or Overt
Discrimination = loss or destruction of
self-esteem
 Bullies rely on fear
 Bullies exert power
Study of Children Who Bully:
-60% of boys who bullied in middle
school had at least one conviction by
age 24.
40% had three or more (Olweus)
Impact on the Victim
Everyday ~160,000 students stay home from school
due to the fear of being bullied (Vail, 1999)
15% - 25% of U.S. students are bullied with some
frequency (Nansel et al, 2001)
Kids & Teens Use the Internet Daily
 Research, Read, Write
 Blog, Make Sites, Create Social Networks
 Search for Colleges & Jobs
 Share Photos & Videos
 Chat / Instant Message (IM)
 Play Games
 Download Music, Movies
Internet Safety 101
Inappropriate content:
 Pornography
 Hateful, racist, and violent material
 Details of illegal activity
 Obtaining drugs, alcohol
 How to make drugs, explosives
 Gambling websites
The Internet is Everywhere
 The Internet is accessible from almost any
location and portable devices
 Kids need your help navigating the Internet
to avoid its risks
Your Child’s Online Life
33% of 13 to 17-year-olds reported that their parents
or guardians know “very little” or “nothing” about
what they do on the Internet. (Source: NCMEC & Cox
Communications.)
 Communicate with your kids about online safety
 Educate yourself about the Internet and related
technologies
What’s Your IM IQ?
MOS
Mom Over Shoulder
CD9
Code 9: Parents Nearby
A/S/L? Age, sex, location?
GNOC! Get Naked On Camera!
MIRL
Meet in real life
You Can’t Take It Back!
Online profiles and blogs can also be viewed by:
 Parents, guardians, and relatives
 Teachers and principals
 Colleges and universities
 Employers
 ONLINE PREDATORS
If it’s on the Internet, IT’S NOT PRIVATE.
You Can’t Take It Back!
Photos and videos should never be posted online if
they show:
 Backgrounds that reveal identifying information
 Sexually provocative poses
 Too much skin
WHAT IS
CYBER-BULLYING?
- When a child is tormented, harassed, embarrassed,
threatened, or humiliated repeatedly by another child
or group of children
- Occurs online or through another electronic device
- Research indicates that at least half of middle and
high school students have been bullied online at least
once!
CYBER-BULLY vs.
PLAYGROUND BULLY
 ANONYMOUS – Cyber-bullies can hide their identities
online
 NO SUPERVISION online – on the playground, adults
are usually watching!
 CONTINOUS VICTIMIZATION
 Most kids have cell phones or Internet access
constantly
COMMON PLACES…
 Instant Messaging
 Email
 Social Networking
 Facebook, Myspace, MyYearbook, Stickam, YouTube
 Cell Phones
 Text Messages
 Apps - iPhone’s “Ugly Meter”
Cyber-Bullying Matters
 19% of teens report being harassed or bullied online
 The incidence is higher among kids 16- and 17- year-
olds at 23%
 85% of incidents occur when youth are at home
• Information can be inadvertently revealed
in pictures
• Sexually provocative pictures can be used
for exploitation
How to Create
Safer Social Networking
 Make your own profile and add your
children as friends
 Learn the site’s safety features
 Have children use privacy settings
 Teach kids to add only friends they know in real life
 Examine their list of friends and browse their
friends’ pages
Facebook Security
 Facebook allows it’s users to download a copy of their
profile to a zip file that Facebook stores.
 This information can be provided to Law Enforcement in
the event an incident occurs involving a Facebook
Profile.
 Parents with access to their child's profile can download
this information and provide a copy to LEA for their
investigation.
 This includes photos, videos, posts, messages, friends
lists, and other content shared with others.
Download Profile
 Access “Account” from drop down menu in upper
right corner
 Choose “Account Setting”
 At bottom of menu choose “Download Your
Information, Learn More”
 Choose “Download”
What is “sexting”?
The sending or
receiving of
sexuallysuggestive or
explicit text or
pictures via one’s
cell phone, web
cam or other
electronic means.
How widespread is this
problem?

One in five teens (13-19 years) of age have sent/posted nude or
semi-nude pictures or videos of themselves

21% of teen girls and 39% of teen boys sent these photos in
hopes of dating or 'hooking up' with the person receiving the
photos

51% of girls say they have felt pressure from a guy to send
nude photos

33% of boys admit to having looked at nude or semi nude
images - originally meant for someone else
The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy
Real life imitates life online
 What teens are doing electronically seems to have
an effect on what they do in real life: 22% admit that
technology makes them personally more forward
and aggressive.
 38% say exchanging sexy content makes dating or
hooking up with others more likely.
 29% believe those exchanging sexy content are
“expected” to date or hook up.
Tragic Consequences
After his former girlfriend taunted him, Phillip Alpert
remembered the nude photos she e-mailed to him
while they were dating.
He took revenge with an electronic blast — e-mailing
the photos of the 16-year-old girl to more than 70
people, including her parents, grandparents and
teachers.
Teen committed suicide over
‘sexting’
Jesse Logan was taunted about photo
she sent to boyfriend
February 15, 1990 - July 3, 2008
Cell Porn Scandal Hits Pa. High School
ALLENTOWN, PA. January 24, 2008 (AP)
“Police faced a difficult
if not impossible task
Thursday as they tried
to stop the spread of
pornographic video
and photos of two high
school girls, images
that were transmitted
by cell phone to dozens
of the girls' classmates
and then to the wider
world.”
Discussion Points
Scenario 1
Boyfriend breaks up with the girl then sends the
image to 20 of his friends who then send it to their
friends.
Charge
Don’t charge
Discussion Points
Scenario 2
The original girl commits suicide as the result of her
picture being shared all over the Internet.
Charge
Don’t charge
What Can Parents & Schools Do?
Set rules for Internet use:
 What sites can your child visit?
 Whom can they talk to online?
 How much time can they spend online?
 Keep the computer in a common room (not in
secluded areas like a bedroom or basement)
What You Can Do
Consider safeguarding options:
 Filtering applications restrict access to
inappropriate material
 Monitoring software records websites
visited, chat conversations, and other
content
What You Can Do
 Tell your child not to respond to harassing
messages
 Save the evidence
 Set up a new account for your child and lock them
out of the old one
 If you believe your child is in immediate danger,
contact your local law-enforcement agency.
What You Can Do
Communicate:
 Encourage your child to confide in you about
anything that makes them feel scared,
uncomfortable, or confused while online
 Prepare yourself beforehand for what they may tell
you
What We Do
 Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Forces
 Coordination with the National Center for Missing &
Exploited Children (NCMEC)
 Coordination with local, state, and federal law
enforcement agencies
Megan Meier
The New York Times
August 3, 2008
“Megan Meier, 13, began receiving
nasty messages from a boy after a
few weeks of an online flirtation
with him, via her MySpace
account, ending with one that
suggested “the world would be a
better place” without her. Megan,
believing she had been rejected by
"Josh," committed suicide in her
home.”
Megan Meier
- 13 years old
- The “Unattractive Girl”
- Catholic School, MO
- Committed Suicide on:
October 17, 2006
- A mother was Charged & Convicted
(conviction was later overturned)
Megan Meier
- The “Bullies” used:
- MySpace
(created a “hoax” account and used
it to post “mean” comments)
Phoebe Prince
- 15 years old
- The “New Girl”
- South Hadley High School, Mass.
- Committed Suicide on:
January 14, 2010
- 5 Students Charged
Phoebe Prince
- The “Bullies” used:
- Facebook
- Twitter
- Craigs List
- Springform
Phoebe Prince
You do not want to have to hold a
vigil at your school
RESOURCES
 Cyber-bullying Research Center –
www.cyberbullying.us
 National Center for Bullying Prevention -
www.pacer.org/bullying/index.asp
 STOP Cyberbullying –
www.stopcyberbullying.org/
 Netsmartz – www.netsmartz.org
 National Center for Missing & Exploited Children -
www.cybertipline.com