{"id":7584,"date":"2012-08-20T12:58:52","date_gmt":"2012-08-20T19:58:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/spiken.wpengine.com\/news\/u-s-attorney-offers-online-safety-tips-for-children-parents\/"},"modified":"2012-08-20T12:58:52","modified_gmt":"2012-08-20T19:58:52","slug":"u-s-attorney-offers-online-safety-tips-for-children-parents","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/news\/u-s-attorney-offers-online-safety-tips-for-children-parents\/","title":{"rendered":"U.S. Attorney offers online safety tips for children; parents"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kent schools start Aug. 30 and U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan is kicking off the new school year across Western Washington by reminding parents and guardians of things they can do to keep their children safe online.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

While computers, smart phones and game consoles can have great benefits, parents need to know the risks they bring and talk to their kids about it, according to a U.S. Attorney’s Office media release.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Cyber safety for elementary and middle school children is a critical concern. Recent data indicates 13 percent of elementary school children have received some type of sexual solicitation or approach through the internet. In the state of Washington that would translate to almost 60,000 of the 400,000 elementary aged children.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to protect our kids in the virtual world,” said Durkan, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Washington. “Modern technology gives us many ways to learn and stay connected. But it can also make our children vulnerable to predators and con artists. Social pressures can also lead to bullying, or to behavior with criminal consequences kids don\u2019t fully understand. I urge parents and guardians to take this opportunity before school starts to talk to their kids about cyber safety. Set some ground rules and make sure you know what your child is doing online.”<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

The U.S. Attorney is sending information sheets to public and private elementary and middle schools in Western Washington so that they can be printed and placed in the first day packets of information that go home with students, or posted on the school website. The information has a link to www.netsmartz.org \u2013 a great resource for families wanting information about all types of cyber security.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Over the past year law enforcement in Western Washington has investigated cases of sex offenders and others using the internet, including social media and games, to disguise their identities and troll for young victims. Cyber bullying, identity theft and financial fraud can also victimize families via the internet.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

The materials sent to the schools can be found on the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office website at http:\/\/www.justice.gov\/usao\/waw\/Programs\/psc.html<\/a>.\u00a0 This fall the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office will join with federal law enforcement experts and local PTSA organizations to sponsor information nights where parents and guardians can get more information on cyber security.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Internet, Mobile Phones, and Texting Safety Tips for Kids<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do not post personal information online (name, age, birth date, address,<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

telephone number, or school name).\u00a0 This information can be used by others to<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

find out where you and your family live.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do not post your picture or pictures of your family online \u2013 they can be copied or<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

changed or used to find you.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do not send any inappropriate photo or message by email or text.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do not post your plans and activities in a chat room or on your personal website.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do not post entries that make it clear that no one is at your home.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do not communicate with someone who has made you uncomfortable or afraid.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Tell your parents or a trusted adult if someone does.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do not join online groups or games without talking to your parents.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do not meet with someone you met online without first telling your parents or<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

guardian.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do not post hurtful or inappropriate messages.\u00a0 If someone else posts hurtful or<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

inappropriate messages — do not respond, but do tell a teacher, parent or other<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

adult.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do not click on any link that you do not know, and you are not sure is legitimate.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do not buy any \u201capps\u201d or \u201cin app\u201d purchases without talking to your parents or<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

guardian.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do not enable any location services without talking to your parents or guardian.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do remember that people can lie online and say they are something they are not.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Someone who says they are a 12-year-old girl could really be an older man<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

looking to harm you.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do save messages that upset you and show them to your parents.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do share your password with your parents.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do visit www.netsmartz.org to learn more about Internet safety.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Internet, Mobile Phones, and Texting Safety Tips for Parents<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do teach your child not to post identifying information on the Internet.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do set a limit for how much time your child can spend online.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do keep the computer in a public room in the house.\u00a0 Do not have an Internetconnected computer in your child\u2019s bedroom.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do utilize parental controls provided by your Internet Service Provider and\/or<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

blocking software. (Contact your Internet ISP if you have questions).<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do talk to your children about purchasing \u201cin app\u201d products.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do talk to your child about using any location services on their device.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do periodically review your child\u2019s computer, emails and messages.\u00a0 You<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

should have all of your children\u2019s passwords.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do spend time with your child online.\u00a0 Have them show you their favorite<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

online destinations.\u00a0 Get to know your child\u2019s online friends as you would<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

their real-life friends.\u00a0 Learn to navigate the web.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do know who they text and email.\u00a0 Most providers have online ways to<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

identify frequent contacts so you can see if someone new appears as a<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

contact.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do monitor your child\u2019s access to the Internet and texting.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do talk to your child about the danger of Internet predators.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do watch for unexplained changes in your child\u2019s behavior.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do NOT hesitate to seek help from law enforcement if you think a predator<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

may be targeting your child.<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kent schools start Aug. 30 and U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan is kicking off the new school year across Western Washington by reminding parents and guardians of things they can do to keep their children safe online.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":212,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"yst_prominent_words":[],"class_list":["post-7584","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7584"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/212"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7584"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7584\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7584"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7584"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7584"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=7584"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}