Miss America Joins Online Predator Fight!!
Another huge development in the Child Online Protection sector… As I am sure you have heard, the new reigning Miss America, America’s Most Wanted and New York’s Suffolk County’s computer crimes unit have teamed up to bust online predators.
You can read the AP article here.
Basically, the Suffolk County PD created the profile of a 14-year-old and used photos of Miss America (Lauren Nelson) as a teenager. She entered chat rooms and just waited for the men to flock to her. She eventually provided a voice on the phone and a bait to ensure predators would eagerly come into the house where she waited on Long Island, NY.
At least four men were arrested and face charges. Some came from as far as New Jersey for the chance to have sex with the “14-year-old.”
Mr. Walsh and co. seem to have jumped on the project in an effort to capture some of the success that Mr. Hansen and the Dateline crew have accrued. The sting operations were recently conducted and filmed by America’s Most Wanted, to be aired this Saturday, April 28th.
John Walsh and Lauren Nelson, who was a near-victim of an online predator when she was younger, have been giving interviews and were even on The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet on FOX this morning. There is some great footage of these dirtbags realizing they’ve been caught… which, incidentally, is my favorite part of these shows – that moment when you see “Oh Sh*t” scroll across their mind!
Thankfully, there were no real 14- or 15-year old girls involved, but the issue of child online safety is hotter than ever. The events documented and publicized by the Walsh/Nelson/Suffolk County trio are definitely a big win in two categories: most scumbags off the Net – and more spotlight on the issue.
But it also clearly shows that predators are still out there, and there is an endless supply of them. Protect your kids.
A final note to all parents: Protect your kids from the dangers online. Talk to them. Know what your kids are doing on the Internet and whom they are coming in contact with. A few easy steps and helpful software (like our PC Pandora) can go miles in keeping your kids safe!
I raise my glass in toast to Lauren Nelson for committing her reign to the safety and welfare of kids who just want to have fun on the Internet!
