Teens And Blogs - Internet Safety Wake-Up Call
Below is a MRR and PLR article in category Internet Business -> subcategory Blogging.
Teens and Blogs: A Wake-Up Call for Internet Safety
In November 2005, I came across a story about a Roman Catholic high school in Sparta that instructed its students to remove their personal blogs to protect them from online predators. This highlights a critical question: how can we keep our kids safe online?
The internet can be a gateway for predators to reach children, making it crucial for parents to monitor their children's online activities more effectively. Websites like Xanga, MySpace, and LiveJournal can expose children to potential risks. As a parent of two teenagers, I believe it's our responsibility to educate them about online dangers.
Children often don’t realize the visibility of their blog entries. My kids have blogs, but my husband and I carefully monitor them. It’s important to teach our children about online safety. For guidance, visit [BlogSafety.com](http://BlogSafety.com) and [SafeTeens.com](http://SafeTeens.com).
Regarding sites like Hi5, I received several invitations and decided to register in November 2005, only to discover privacy concerns. Hi5 collects personal information during registration and may combine it with data from business partners. They also automatically gather information from your browser.
Hi5 even accesses your Hotmail or Yahoo address lists, sending emails to your contacts without permission. Although I avoided sharing my passwords, Hi5 still gathered my information. Eventually, I managed to delete my account using their help file. In my opinion, Hi5 is even more concerning than Xanga and MySpace.
I urge parents to review and delete their children's accounts on Hi5, as private details are often exposed, creating opportunities for predators. Websites like Hi5, MySpace, and others encourage kids to post photos and personal information, which is worrisome.
If your child uses the internet and you haven’t been monitoring their activity, now is the time to start. NBC News’ Rob Stafford reported on MySpace’s risks, emphasizing the need for parental awareness. Catch it at [NBC News](http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11064451/).
Posting your child’s picture online can be risky. Personal information, like home addresses, is easily accessible, and images can be digitally altered and misused. The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children reports over 20,000 child pornography images are posted online weekly.
Donna Rice Hughes from [ProtectKids.com](http://Protectkids.com) highlights the growing demand for such images, often featuring babies and toddlers. More than 100,000 websites offer illegal child pornography worldwide (Red Herring Magazine, 2002).
I’m not paranoid, but I choose not to post my children's pictures online. We must use common sense and keep them safe from predators. For more advice, visit [Say No to Contests](http://members.tripod.com/~Seadooer/sayno-contests.html).
Let’s protect our children by monitoring their internet activity. They are our most precious asset, deserving of our love and vigilance.
You can find the original non-AI version of this article here: Teens And Blogs - Internet Safety Wake-Up Call.
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