Sex Offender Stats – What Parents Should Know
- 95% of parents didn't recognize the lingo kids use to let people
know that their parents are watching - 89% of sexual solicitations are made in either chat rooms or Instant
Messages - One of out of every five kids has received unwanted sexual solicitation
online - 75% of youth who receive an online sexual solicitation did not tell
a parent - 76% of parents don't have rules about what their kids can do on the
computer - 4,000,000 children are posting content to the Web everyday
- 15,000,000 youth use Instant Messages
- 80% of offenders were quite explicit about their sexual intentions
- 73% of cases include multiple sexual encounters
- In half the cases, victims are described as being in love with the
offender or feelings close friendships - On average, 75% of residents live within one mile of a registered
sex offender. - For the sex offender, the internet is the most effective tool ever
invented. - 80% of children ages 7-18 receive inappropriate e-mail, instant messages
or text messages on a daily basis. - 37% of on-line teens have used IM (Instant Messenger) to write something
that they would not have said in person. - On the internet, everyone's child is a target.
Why the Internet is the perfect place for the child sex offender. It
provides the offender with:
- An unsupervised environment
- Instant gratification
- Easy and affordable access
- Tremendous storage capacity
- Perception of privacy and anonymity
- Opportunity for instant communication with children using e-mail,
chat rooms, instant messaging, newsgroups, clubs, Blogging, MySpace,
Facebook, etc.)
Where do Predators meet our children?
- Chat Rooms such as Yahoo, AOL
- MySpace, Facebook
- File Sharing Sites
- Instant Messenger
What Can Parents Do
- Learn everything you can about computers, the Internet and related
technology.
- Develop and maintain proficiency through use.
- Ask children to demonstrate.
- Take time to discuss concerns, agree on ground rules.
- Understand their needs.
- Set reasonable expectations.
child's bedroom or a secluded area.
completing "profiles" and minimize dissemination.
of Computer/Internet Management Software that provides:
- Age-based access levels.
- Filtering and blocking (incoming and outgoing)
- Time restrictions.
- Activity Logs. Parents can view logs that list web sites visited,
web sites blocked, chat sessions...Software that can even capture
screen shots and e-mail messages to you if a rule is violated.
Internet files and keyword searches. Also...what can it mean if history,
keyword or temporary Internet files are cleared????
Parents, ask yourself...
- Do you know who is on your child's friends list?????
- Is your child posting too much information about themselves? They
should not post their name, address, phone number, or school name. - Does your child have multiple MySpace accounts?