|
Police Department
Teenager Safety on the Internet
MySpace.com
|
Parents, are you aware of www.myspace.com, a free website that allows the posting of personal profiles, photo galleries, and blogs?
Students from local communities, including Clarendon Hills, are accessing this website and revealing personal information about where they go to school, who their friends are, and providing photographs. The site has been advertised as a safe place for young students to communicate with their classmates or design a “cool” personal page.
MySpace forbids minors 13 and under from joining the site and provides special protections for those 14 and 15 - only those on their friends’ list can view their profiles. Nonetheless, kids lie when they sign up, and many of their profiles carry photos of themselves in suggestive poses, along with personal information against the site’s recommendations.
According to the Associated Press, police in Middletown, Connecticut, are investigating recent reports that as many as seven local girls were sexually assaulted by men in their 20s who contacted them through MySpace pretending to be teenagers.
If you need further information, do not hesitate to call the Police Department at our non-emergency number, (630) 286-5460.
|
Basic Rules for Online Safety
|
Keep your identity private.
Never get together with someone you "meet" online. You never know for certain if the people you meet online are who they say they are.
Never respond to e-mails, chat comments, or newsgroup messages that are hostile, belligerent or inappropriate, or in any way make you feel uncomfortable.
Talk to your parents about their expectations and ground rules for going online.
|
General Risks
|
Situations and behaviors that make you feel uncomfortable.
Putting yourself in physical danger. The number of teens who are molested, abducted, or leave home as a result of contacts made on the Internet are relatively low, but when it happens the results can be tragic.
Giving up privacy or putting yourself or your family at risk. Be especially wary of any "get rich quick" schemes. If something sounds "too good to be true", it probably is.
Harassment.
Hurting others and getting into trouble.
|
Risks by Area
|
The Web - Some websites are wonderful, others are kind of dumb, and some contain so-called "adult" images and other material that teens should avoid. Still others are violent, racist, sexist, and demeaning. Some of these sites contain material that can be disturbing, even for adults. If you wander into any of these areas, it's best to leave immediately by clicking on the Home icon, going to another site, or shutting down your browser.
Chat Rooms - Chat rooms are probably the most dangerous area on the Internet. To put it bluntly, chat rooms- especially those used by teenagers- are sometimes used by pedophiles to find victims. It can be tempting to get together with someone you meet in a chat room, but remember- people are not always what they seem to be. Chat rooms are organized around topics. Avoid any topic area that makes you feel uncomfortable.
E-mail - If you ever receive an E-mail message that is belligerent, threatening, or contains material that makes you feel uncomfortable, you should report it to your Internet service provider and ask them to investigate where it came from. If the material appears to be illegal in nature, you should report it to the Cyber Tipline at www.missingkids.com/cybertip or call 1-800-843-5678. Illegal material includes threats to your life or safety, threats to others, child pornography, and evidence of the other crimes. Never send a photograph of yourself or any personal information to someone you don't know.
|
Guidelines for Parents
|
Talk to your teens about what they can and cannot do online.
Be open with your teens and encourage them to come to you if they encounter a problem online.
Learn everything you can about the Internet.
Check out blocking, filtering, and ratings.
|
This page was condensed from the brochure "Teen Safety on the Information Highway." The brochure is written by Lawrence J. Magid and produced by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and the Interactive Services Association, and The MASTER Teacher.
More information can be obtained from www.safekids.com & www.safeteens.com.
|
Clarendon Hills Police Department
|
448 Park Avenue
Emergency: 9-1-1
Non-Emergency: (630) 286-5460
Fax: (630) 286-5499
|
|
|
 |
