Our New Friends: StopInternetPredators.org
Well, the nasty Internet predators must have been especially slick this past week, as I have no reports to relay for my Wacky Internet predator Wednesday round-up…
I do, however, have some news to share relating to the perverts that troll the web looking for kids to solicit. I am very excited and couldn’t be happier to announce our joining and making friends with the folks at StopInternetPredators.org.
Stop Internet Predators is a project of Stop Child Predators, launched to educate parents and communities on emerging online child safety issues and empower them to protect their children’s privacy and safety. Executive director Stacie Rumenap has worked hard to bring together a team of policy experts, law enforcement officers, community leaders, and parents who persuade lawmakers and the public to enact policies that protect America’s children from sexual predators. Stop Child Predators is the only national organization that leads campaigns in every state to advocate legislation that prevents the sexual exploitation of children and protects the rights of child victims.
Stop Internet Predators, which we became a partner of, has a special focus on new internet technologies that pose a risk to their children’s safety, such as Google’s Street View, which has surfaced as their first major campaign. Google’s Street View has, at times, uploaded images of minors and places where minors live or congregate without parental consent. This in turn, memorializes children in association with a physical address. Stop Internet Predators has partnered with various organizations, like us at Pandora Corp., that offer solutions – like our PC Pandora monitoring software – or guidance for parents.
Take a look at how predators can use Google’s Street View to watch your kids right here:
Check out this story on TampaBayOnline.com as well: ‘Street View’ Images Draw Concern
The StopInternetPredators.org website has lots of great information for parents, including a page devoted to state-by-state resources and a page that enables and encourages parents to take action.
Check out the StopInternetPredators blog and subscribe to it. Learn what YOU (parents!) can do at home to make sure your kids aren’t victims of Internet predators. And remember this: a lot of folks want you to believe the fears are over-hyped and exaggerated. While the statistics may be low, one number is very high – the number of scumbags that troll the net TRYING to solicit kids online. There is no shortage of these guys and just because your kid isn’t a victim (as far as you know), doesn’t mean there aren’t people out there trying to change that and make them one. You have to remain vigilant and ready to act as parents. Years ago if your kid was sitting at home, you KNEW they were safe. Now sitting at home means they are probably connected to the internet and connected to the world. More so, it means the world is connected to them!
Make sure they are safe by monitoring their computer activity with tools like our PC Pandora. PC Pandora monitoring software will let you know if your child is being contacted by or talking to a predator and either oblivious to the fact that the person means harm OR is simply being risky and not telling you.
So check out StopInternetPredators.org and check out our PC Pandora monitoring software. Both are great resources and tools that will make sure your children aren’t being victimized by Internet predators.