“Internet Can Be a Dangerous Place for Children When Unsupervised”
Cathy Koplen, News Chief Newspaper
9/19/2010
<http://www.newschief.com/article/20100919/NEWS/9195029?p=2&tc=pg>
Although the internet has become a necessity to our everyday lives, there are many dangers that lurk for young, unsupervised children. These dangers have worsened, as the advance in cellular technology has made it much simpler for people to access the internet almost anytime and anywhere they may want to. There has been a significant thirty percent increase from 2004 in the amount of American children who own a cell phone, giving people a reason to worry. The Federal Trade Commission is becoming increasingly concerned about the amount of personal information that young children choose to share over the internet which is becoming easier for them to do with the amount of children that now own a cellular phone. The Federal Trade Commission is putting fourth its best efforts to catch Internet predators that are involved in cell phone investigations. Although there is specific software used at institutions such as public libraries and schools blocking inappropriate content, there is no way to completely protect children from the ongoing issue of Internet predators, which is why it is so important to keep them educated and informed about this topic.
As soon as I read this article, it immediately reminded me of the show that I have seen on Dateline NBC called To Catch a Predator. It is not only scary, but also shocking to see the amount of adults that will inappropriately communicate with underage children, knowing the consequences of their actions if they were to be caught. Many times, young children do not see the harm in uploading photos or personal information to websites such as Facebook and MySpace because they are uninformed about the issue of Internet predators or like many other young kids, think they are invincible and that nothing bad will happen to them. Since the age in which children are beginning to own a cell phone is becoming younger and younger, the opportunities for Internet predators to strike are becoming even greater because children are able to access the internet from a cell phone, creating no way for the parent to supervise what their child is doing.
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I think this is a very interesting article. I agree with your feedback, it is scary, especially wondering into the future with what life may be like by the time we have children. I think it is good that the government is trying to help out and do something about it, however there is only so much that they can do and where parents need to step in. Although children have access to a lot of stuff now, a lot of it can be monitored pretty easily as well.
ReplyDeleteThis story touches on the many concerns regarding unsupervised children and their increased usage of the internet. The young age of children using social networking sites is astounding. Some of my cousins as young as 12 have facebooks or myspaces which scares me. Given that, their parents and our family have made sure their privacy settings are implemented and that they understand the dangers of the internet. However, some children go completely unsupervised on the internet which is definately a scary thought especially with all the predators out there.
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