Internet Safety Social Networking & Cyber Bullying

Social Networking A Social Network is a social structure made up of individuals or organizations that are tied by one or more interdependency, such as values, visions, ideas, financial exchange, friendship, kinship, conflict, etc.

Ways to Communicate Popular websites such as My Space, Facebook Gaming sites such as Club Penguin, Webkinzs Chat/Instant Messaging Blogs P2P (peer to peer) Cell Phones

My Space  Myspace.com is a free online website designed primarily for social- networking  It allows users to set up their own profile pages oFavorite musicians, books, photos, hobbies, friends, phone numbers and links to other pages and friends 

 Users can remain anonymous or establish a false identity  Children often list their real name, address and schools they attend  Creating multiple myspace accounts  Meeting other users who are not who they claim to be

Problems with My Space Cyberbullying each other  Gang activity and recruitment  Law enforcement can use information on myspace.com to investigate multiple types of criminal activity  Parents should check what personal information your children are posting online  Children may create multiple accounts, beware of what is put on their page can come back to haunt you later (College application, employment)  Law enforcement-check if children are engaging in cyber bullying or criminal activity

Saturday Night Live-My Space eo/index.shtml#mea=22108

Gaming Sites Club Penguin allows users to communicate with each other The Ultimate-Safe Chat mode allows players to select phrases from a list. The Open Chat allows players to enter their own custom messages.

If a players on Club Penguin uses profanity they are often punished by an automatic 24-hour ban, although not all vulgar language results in an immediate ban. After using inappropriate language 3-5 times user will be banned from the site Webkinz has similar rules and limitations

Chat/ Instant Messaging Many sites such as MSN, gmail, Yahoo are free services Provide unlimited screen names Above sites have both IM and Chat capabilities Many are not regulated or controlled

Chat/Instant Messaging 60% of all online teens have received instant messages from total strangers 50% of those who instant message or chat have corresponded with total strangers

Dangers of Chat/IM Sexual Predators- dirty talkers, travelers, stranger/danger characteristics Kids getting themselves in trouble- harassment, threats, impersonation, picture and video distribution

P2P File sharing, few legitimate uses such as music, e- books, pornography Accidental exposure- going on the wrong website

Cell Phones Voice, text messages, camera and video, mobile IM Problems with: Exclusion-intentionally and cruelly excluding others Cyberstalking-intense harassment that includes threats or create significant fear

Cyber Bullying

Cyber Bullying is sending or posting threatening or harassing text or images using the internet or other digital communication devices

Types of Cyber Bullying Direct Attacks, Cyber Bullying by Proxy How? IM, stealing passwords, blogs, create web sites, sending pictures via or cell phones, internet polling, interactive gaming, sending malicious code, impersonation, sending junk and pornography

Forms of Cyber Bullying Flaming- online fights using electronic message with angry and vulgar language Harassment-repeatedly sending nasty, mean and insulting messages Denigration- “dissing” someone online Impersonation-pretending to be someone else and sending or posting material to get attention Outing-sharing someone’s secrets and embarrassing information Trickery-talking someone into revealing secrets

Harassment on the Internet Considered to be the #1 problem among teens Children should: Avoid profanity, escalation of emotions Avoid anything that may hurt others online Avoid giving out personal information to someone else

Facts to be Aware of

1 in 4 children are accidentally exposed to nudity or sexual content online 1 in 5 children have received a sexual solicitation online 1 in 33 children received an aggressive solicitation to meet someone

The average age of exposure to online pornography is 11 years old 52% of students in grades 5-8 use the internet when adults are not present 14% admit to visiting gambling websites

Half of all teens ages 13 to 18, have communicated with someone they have never met in person. Only 1 in 8 of them realized that it was an adult pretending to be much younger 75% of children are willing to share personal information about themselves or their families on line for goods or services

Signs a Child may be at Risk Child receives mail, gifts, or packages from someone they never met in person Child turns the computer monitor off, or quickly changes the screen on the monitor when you enter the room or go near their computer Child becomes withdrawn

Internet Safety Tips New Jersey State Police High Technology Crimes and Investigations Support Unit

Internet Guideline for Parents Place the computer in a common area of the residence rather than a bedroom. This will encourage online time to be a family oriented activity. Become familiar with the people and web sites your children are interacting with on the internet, just as you would get to know all of their other friends. Choose a family oriented Internet Service Provider or Online Service and use Parental Controls or software to regulate the type of information and material your children can access on the Internet. Most of the Parental Controls and software allow adults to restrict access to age appropriate levels.

Try to select non-descriptive Account Names and Screen Names for your children. Their online names should not be too specific or identify or describe them in detail. Remind your children not to provide their real name, phone number, address, or other personal information to anyone to whom they meet online, and never to meet face to face with anyone they have met through the internet without your permission. If you do permit such a meeting, it should be in a public place and that you or another responsible adult should accompany your child.

Set reasonable guidelines for your children's time online and remember that the computer should not be thought of as a "babysitter". The guidelines should be age appropriate. Remember, what is acceptable for a teenager may not be acceptable for a younger child. Remind your children that the rules are the same for any computer they use, whether at home, a friend's house, school, or the public library. Assure your children that they can talk with you about things that happen on the internet. If they fear that they will lose their internet access, they may be reluctant to talk about anything bad that happened on the internet.