No longer preoccupied with homework and after-school activities, kids are likely to spend more of their free time social networking and surfing the Web, which can become a cyber playground for online predators.
Carrollton Police Sgt. Blake Hitchcock said online predators are well aware that children are likely spending more unsupervised time online, especially when they’re parents are at work.
“Predators know that children are out of school so kids just have to watch what they say and don’t let anyone know that they’re by themselves,” Hitchcock said.
He advises kids to be on guard at all times. The department investigated four cases last year involving the solicitation, possession or distribution of photos and videos depicting children being sexually exploited. The investigators made two arrests out of those four cases, according to Hitchcock.
One of the cases remains under investigation and the other was closed. Police have investigated four cases involving child exploitation so far this year. Hitchcock believes the most important thing parents should be concerned about right now is their child’s use of smartphones.
“You can do just about anything that you do on your computer on a smartphone,” he said. “Parents especially need to be knowledgeable about what you can do on cell phones and computers and keep up to date with technology.”
Read more:Times-Georgian - Police warn parents of potential predators awaiting kids online
No comments:
Post a Comment