Department of Justice U S Attorney s Office Southern

Department of Justice U. S. Attorney’s Office Southern District of Alabama Internet Safety: What Every Parent Should Know to Protect Children from Online Predators Tommy Loftis Law Enforcement Coordinator (251) 441 -5845 Thomas. Loftis@usdoj. gov

Kids and the Internet n 93% of teens (12 -17) go online. (Pew Internet and American Life Project, 2010. ) n Of the children (0 -5) who use the Internet, 80% use it at least once a week. (Always Connected: The new digital media habits of young children, Joan Ganz Cooney Center, 2011. )

Kids and the Internet Cell Phones n 75% of teens (12 -17) have cell phones. n On average, texting teens (12 -17) send and receive 1500 text messages a month. Pew Internet and American Life Project, 2010.

What Happens When Colleges Look at Facebook n 25 % of the 350 college admissions officers surveyed admitted to using Facebook and Google to look at applicants n 35% of college applications negatively impacted by what was found online, up from 12% last year n Issues- vulgarity, alcohol consumption in pics, and illegal activity

Limit Profile Searchability n Settings- uncheck “Enable Public Search” n Keep Profile Photo Appropriate n Control Who Can Contact You

Remove Past Posts From View n Recently added privacy setting removes past post from public view n Take control of tagging on your profile, go to “How Tags Work” n Careful who your friends are, colleges often get anonymous tips on what to look for on Facebook

TWITTER n Don’t put anything on Twitter that you wouldn’t send to your grandmother first. n Setting- Protect my Tweets, only people who have permission can see your tweets

Facebook Safety n Use Facebook’s privacy settings n Make profile viewable only to friends“Friends of Friends” can be thousands of people you don’t know. n Do not post anything inappropriate on your profile or anywhere else n Delete inappropriate comments/posts

Facebook Safety n Only accept friend requests from people you know in person. Not everyone is who they say they are. n DO NOT post address, phone number, or school information on your profile.

The Underlying Problem n Information does not leave the Internet. Ever. n Anyone can copy and save, and redistribute information. n You can not delete from the Internet. n The only way to prevent private information from becoming public is not to post it at all.

Amanda Todd Committed Suicide Oct 10 th, 2012

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Keeping Personal Information Private Who is looking at you online? Parents Teachers Coaches Future Employers Law Enforcement College Admission Officers Online Predators 29

Sextortion – don’t let it happen to you 30

Cyber Bullying n Don’t respond. n Don’t retaliate. n Save the evidence. n Talk to a trusted adult. 31

Jerry Eugene Bates • Videotaped Female relative with hidden cameras • Multiple CD’s in house containing CP • Video feed to big screen TV in the den • Sentenced to 180 months prison

Richard Brooks Nelson • Registered Sex Offender from New York when moved to Mobile • Texted multiple underage victims, lured children to his home with cookies and candy • Sentenced to 525 months

Dylan Bloodsworth • Initial arrest on cruise ship for statutory rape of female under the age of 15 • Had a prior rape charge in MS where he used Facebook to track his victim • Multiple underage females sent nude photos to him at his request via text • Pled guilty and sentenced to 120 months and lifetime supervised release

Who are the offenders? n On average: – white males – 25 -45 years of age – middle-to-upper class lifestyle – professional employee § many times employed in a career where offender has access to children – involved in children’s activities § youth sports, Scouting, religious groups etc. . . n The US Department of Justice estimates that, on average, there is one child molester PER SQUARE MILE. n Dru Sjodin National Sex Offender Website – http: //www. nsopr. gov/

Targets Primarily children 12 to 15 years old Males – rarely report victimization - stigma. – Can be confused about sexuality – Seeking father figure Females -Often from dysfunctional families - looking for worth and validation outside the home. -in love with offender -low self esteem (body image) n

Chat Rooms Are Dangerous n n n No chat room is safe for children. Personal conversations with unknown people. Sex offenders often pose as children online. Record of chats Reports to Cyber. Tipline – www. cybertipline. com – (800) 843 -5678

Child Pornography NCMEC estimates that 8 million images are added to the Internet each year. n Estimated that 20% of Internet pornography is CP. n Websites, newsgroups, bulletin boards n Victims continue to get younger and conduct continues to get more graphic n – 60% of known victims are prepubescent § 6% are infants Used to groom and entice victims n Whets the appetites of collectors n Production of new images is focus n – Webcams

Your Home, Your Child n Know your child’s access to the Internet and your child’s friends. n 50% of America’s parents said they did not know their children’s friends. *Temple University Study

The Basics… 1) Always keep a computer in a common room in your home. 2) No Webcams. (Remember smartphones) 3) Educate your child to online dangers. 4) Utilize parental controls, filtering software, blocking software and password protection on your computer.

5) Always maintain access to your child’s online account and randomly check their e -mail and browser history. 6) Determine what computer safeguards are utilized by your child’s school, library, and at the homes of your child’s friends. 7) Consider the safety features of any software or medium your child wants to use.

8) Understand that even if your child is a willing participant in any form of sexual exploitation, he/she is never at fault. And finally…

9) Instruct your children: n Never arrange a face-to-face meeting with someone they meet online. n Never send pictures of themselves online to people they do not personally know. n Never give out identifying information online. n Never respond to messages that are suggestive, obscene, belligerent, or harassing. HELP KIDS REALIZE THAT YOU NEVER REALLY KNOW WHO YOU ARE TALKING TO ONLINE!

What can you do in your community… 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Find out who and where the sexual predators are that live in your community. Ensure that your child’s school is focused on Internet safety. Community awareness: make sure everyone in your community is aware of the seriousness of the situation. Know your neighbors. Utilize public record information to educate yourself and others on how your local politicians and law enforcement handle sexual predators. Support those who investigate, prosecute and educate on the subject matter. Too often we wait until one of our own is taken and brutalized before we act. That is too late.

http: //community. dps. alabama. gov/Pages/wf. Sex. Offender. Search. aspx

http: //www. nsopr. gov

Reporting n Cybertipline. com: to report online problems n FBI n ICE n USPIS n Or local law enforcement or state police

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Questions? Tommy Loftis Law Enforcement Coordinator (251) 415 -7131 Thomas. Loftis@usdoj. gov