subject: Chat Rooms Danger Alert! A Parents Guide To Internet Safety [print this page] What are chat rooms and why are they dangerous?Chat rooms have become increasingly popular way for kids to communicate and socialize.However, when using them children are exposed to real threats.There are immediate steps parents can take to break down the walls of chat rooms danger for your kids.
Real Threats
61% of 13-17 year old children have a personal profile on social networking sites
89% of sexual solicitations are made in either chat rooms or instant messages
20% of children age 10-17 have been solicited sexually online; that's 1 out of every 5 kids
45% have been asked for personal info from people they do not know
75% of youth who received an online sexual solicitation did not tell a parent
What are Chat Rooms
Most children have now grown up in the cyber technology boom and are extremely computer savvy.A chat room is a virtual place on the internet where people from different societies, anywhere in the world, can get together in one place and textually chat with one another. It is a great social and educational tool.The only two things a person needs to connect to a chat room, are a computer and internet connection. They are an extremely trendy place for kids to hang out and its only getting more popular.
Dangers Of Chat Rooms
The dangers of chat rooms are evident by the fact that, they are by far, the most popular method for predators to interact online with children or teens.This is for a few reasons.They have become hugely popular, so there are more children exposed and hence more who may fall prey.
Chat rooms are generally social or private.Social rooms are open for anyone to join and are where predators can obtain information- predators look at a child's online profile to get information, even things like hobbies, likes, dislikes etc.Then through group chats the predator can find out more about the general age and sex of a child, their personality type and their home situation.Armed with this information, they gain trust by sympathizing with their target, and having similar interests.This can then lead to the child being coerced into private rooms or worse!
As parents, there are some steps you can take immediately to reduce the risks to your child.
Parents Chat Room Safety Tips
1. Finding out which chat rooms your children use is of extreme importance. They may use more than one.Is it a public or private chat room? What audience is it aimed at?Is it moderated? If moderated, how is this done?By inappropriate language alert or other means?
2. Does the chat room provide panic or help buttons and does your child know where they are?
3.Are there government/authority links available for online safety guides that are easy to find and link to?
4.Is reporting an incident to the chat room provider straight forward, easy to find and easy to execute?
5.What are the providers safety guidelines? What sort of behavior should be reported?
6. Be proactive, not reactive when dealing with your child's internet habits.Invest in some Parental Control Software that can monitor your child's online activities to help give you peace of mind and ensure their safety.
7. Know which chat rooms they use and who your ISP (internet service Provider) is.This is extremely important if your child is threatened and the police need locate the offender.The screen name and exact time also help hugely to locate an offender.
8. Look out for warning signs in your child.Are they excessively online? Are they mainly online in private? Are they quite evasive about what they have been up to, or who they are talking to?Do they often shut down the browser when you enter the room?
The dangers of the internet are real. By far the easiest way to ensure your kids safety is to monitor you kids chat room sessions.This may seem a little extreme, however considering the statistics, investing in some quality monitoring software, could be the best decision you ever made.After all, what price can you put on your child's safety?
