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sexual assault crisis & prevention servicesProject Sister Family Services (PSFS) strives to reduce the trauma and the risk of sexual assault, child abuse, and child sexual abuse in the East San Gabriel and Inland Valleys of Southern California by providing a variety of crisis intervention services and outreach and prevention programs. |
Internet SafetyA Guide for ParentsStaying updated with today's fast paced technology is a big factor in allowing parents to keep better track of their children's online activity. According to Netsmart.org, and a survey commissioned by Cox Communications and National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) found that over half (51%) of parents either do not have or do not know if they have software on their computer(s) that monitors where their teenager(s) go online and with whom they interact. It is estimated that 42% of parents do not review the content of what their teenager(s) read and/or type in chat rooms or via Instant Messaging. Nearly three out of 10 (28%) of parents do not know or are not aware if their teens talk to strangers online. An estimated 30% of parents allow their teenagers to use the computer in private areas of the house such as a bedroom or a home office. Parents say they are more vigilant about where their teen(s) go online if the computer is in a public area of the household. Teens have established a significant presence on social networking web pages: 61% of 13-17-year-olds have a personal profile on a site such as MySpace, Facebook, Friendster, or Xanga. Half have also posted pictures of themselves online. Older teens (16-17) and girls especially use the Internet for social interaction, meeting friends, and networking. However, many have also been exposed to the Internet's accompanying potential risks such as; 71% reported receiving messages online from someone they don't know, 45% have been asked for personal information by someone they don't know, 30% have considered meeting someone that they've only talked to online and 14% have actually met a person face-to-face they they've only spoken to over the Internet (9% of 13-15 year olds; 22% of 16-17). When teens receive messages online from someone they don't know, 40% reported that they'll usually reply and chat with that person. Only 18% said they'll tell an adult. Text messaging is also a frequently used form of communication. There are more than 1,000 text messaging abbreviations, but it is important to know that all the abbreviations are sometimes interpreted differently by different groups of kids. For example a teen on a networking site like Myspace, Facebook, or Twitter may have a different meaning for abbreviations than a teenager texting a friend. Some examples of abbreviations, and Emoticons (Smiley Faces) are: ASL (age, sex, location), LOL (laugh out loud), OMG (oh my god), LGH (lets get high), P911 (parent are near), LMIRL (lets meet in real life), BRB (be right back), : ) (happy face), : ( (sad face), ; ) (winking) and :‘( (wants to cry)…. Just to name a few. You can also go on www.webopedia.com for more abbreviations, and emoticons. Many parents can not understand why teenagers especially their own, would have relationships with people that they meet online. The two problematic characteristics associated with close online relationships were high parent-child conflict and being highly troubled. The girls with high levels of parent-child conflict reported yelling, nagging, and taking away privileges by parents at a higher level than the other girls. The highly troubled girls have levels of depression, victimization, and troubling life events at a higher level than other girls. Boys who have low communication with their parents, and who also report that their parents were less likely to know where they were and who they were with than other boys were the most strongly associated with close online relationships. Girls and boys who reported high levels of Internet use and home Internet access are more likely to report close online relationships. Youth with problems were more likely to have formed online romantic relationships, been asked by online friends for face-to-face meetings, and attended face-to-face meetings with people they first met online. There are currently 600,000 registered sex offenders and over half of them are on networking sites such as Myspace. Parents and adults caretakers must connect with teenagers and teach them the 12 rules of Cyber Safety:
Being informed is a child's best weapon against being exploited on the internet. *24-hour Help Line • 7 days a week 800.656.4673 • 909.626.HELP (909.626.4357) • 626.966.4155 For immediate crisis assistance, please call our 24-hour Help Line. All other questions or comments can be directed to Project Sister Family Services Information. Questions and comments should be non-emergency in nature and will be answered within a week of receipt. |
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What should you do if you've been assaulted? Find out here >>> How to choose a preschool, childcare or daycare center and other ways to keep children safe >>> Free teen prevention education programs available to local schools and organizations >>> Sexual harassment awareness training for employers with 50+ employees. >>> Services for adults molested as children >>> |
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