Anne Bubnic's List: Digital Citizenship/Internet Predators

Anne Collier wrote this landmark article and thoughtful analysis of Predator Fact vs Myth n her blog in 2007. It was widely cited in the blogosphere, for she was one of the first to articulate the concerns about the media sensationalizing predator incidents while the rapidly escalating problem of cyberbullying was all but being ignored.

KINSA has partnered with Nelvana to create a 16-page cyber-safety comic featuring characters from YTV’s hit show, Grossology. The original comic takes kids on an adventure into the underworld of crime (and slime!) while reinforcing KINSA’s Surf Smart™ principles. The comic will be distributed in POP! Magazine in spring 2008 to over 300,000 students in Canada, and is also available for download here.

By mandating schools restrict internet access, CIPA and other federal and state legislation intend to guard students' safety online-but all they may be doing is keeping vital educational technology out of the classroom. No one disputes the need to protect kids from the harm that lurks online. What's at issue is whether or not mandated internet filters are the best way to achieve those safeguards-or whether the filters aren't up to the task and are actually interfering with the educational mission by obstructing use of important Web 2.0 tools.

Blog from Danah Boyd. Last week, she and three other social scientists participated in an Internet Caucus panel in DC. David Finkelhor (Director of Crimes Against Children Research Center), Amanda Lenhart (PEW), and Michele Ybarra (President of Internet Solutions for Kids) all presented quantitative data. Most of the press coverage of Michele and David's work has been terrible in representing the implications of their findings and they helped clarify some of the misinterpretations. The Internet Caucus put the video up online so you can view the actual conversation. <br><br>Personal note: David Finkelhor has a great document that helps clarify interpretations of his work. He coaches you on what to say. You can download <a href = "http://www.unh.edu/ccrc/internet-crimes/Internet Factsheet_portrait version_2-6-08_khf.pdf">INTERNET SAFETY EDUCATION FOR TEENS: GETTING IT RIGHT</a> and use it for your next presentation! <br> <br>

With nearly 13 million online users, the rapidly expanding virtual world Second Life is a risk for children, who could be sexually exploited, U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) said Monday."This Second Life is a new scare, unchartered territory," Wilks said at a news conference Monday with Kirk at the Mt. Prospect Police Department. "It hits home." Kirk said he knew of no cases in which children were targeted by sexual predators on Second Life, but he said he considers the virtual world an emerging danger.

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit that a Texas girl's family filed against MySpace and its parent company, News Corp. The family said MySpace didn't protect young users from sexual predators.The court ruled that the Communications Decency Act of 1996 "bars such lawsuits against Web-based services like MySpace."

The folks at Dateline created this mock MYSPACE page to illustrate how information can be too much information. Roll your mouse over each part of the profile, to see why the information is potentially dangerous. This model could be used to open a great dialogue with students.

Video game systems are more high tech than ever. They are also more popular than ever before, not only with kids but with the sexual predators searching for young victims.

Links to video/audio and full transcripts of a children's online safety panel [May 2007] with Danah Boyd, David Finkelhor, Amanda Lenhart and Michelle Yberra. This was the first time these prominent academics have appeared together to present their research, which, altogether, represents volumes of data on the state of online youth victimization and online youth habits. The 34-page transcript/download is worth the read. You'll also want to download a copy of David Finkelhor's <a href ="http://www.unh.edu/ccrc/internet-crimes/Internet Factsheet_portrait version_2-6-08_khf.pdf"><b>Just the Facts: Getting It Right </b></a>, which he developed so that presenters would accurately represent his research findings. In this document, he coaches you explicitly on how to report the facts. Very valuable, since reports on incidences of online victimization are so inconsistent and so many people misinterpret the findings! <br>

John Palfrey & Urs Gasser [Berkman Center] identify 9 myths about Digital Natives and offer succinct interpretations based on research and observations of youth. Educators involved in digital citizenship efforts may find a shift in thinking is necessary in how we educate students about issues related to online safety, copyright, privacy etc....where their confusions are and what they do/don't understand. It's also important to understand the significance of social groups and online communities on our youth and how they motivate development of friendship-driven and interest-driven content.

Cops Fear Vt. 12-Year-Old May Have Gone To Meet Someone She Met Through Online Social Site.

Update: Brooke Bennett disappeared in June 2008 and her body was found a week later. Bennett's uncle Michael Jacques was charged with the kidnapping. According to an affidavit, an unidentified minor told police that Bennett was being groomed by her uncle to join a sex ring called Breckinridge. There was no connection to MySpace.

Sexual predators are using gaming consoles such as the Wii, PlayStation and Xbox to meet children online.

"Child predators are migrating from traditional methods to alternate media," says Detective Lt. Thomas Kish of the Michigan State Police. "They are going to places where children are." Predators view games that allow kids to access the Internet and text message other players as a "foot in the door," he says.

VERY helpful document!!! <br><br>A growing number of people are promoting Internet Safety Education in effort to keep youngsters safe from Internet sex offenders. But be cautious about some of the statistics that you may find from lectures, pamphlets, videos and web sites. Not all of the data accurately reflects what researchers have learned about cyberpredator crimes. For the <b>real stats and myths vs. realities on child predators </b>, download a copy of: <b>Internet Safety For Teens: Getting it Right</b> . This fact sheet (created by Dr. David Finkelhor at the Crimes Against Children Research Center) is packed with helpful clarifying information for your next presentation.

One of the most dangerous, insidious aspects of the Internet is the targeting of children by online sexual predators. These criminals employ a series of clever, manipulative tactics to reach out to children in an effort to get them to meet in person. Any parent with children who use the Internet should be aware of the strategies employed by online predators.

PBS/Digital Nation provides five focal areas for their latest documentary and multiple sub-topics among them: LIVING FASTER, RELATIONSHIPS, WAGING WAR, VIRTUAL WORLDS and LEARNING. All of the videos are captured at this site for use as future resources. There are also lessons for teachers and a discussion round table where you can leave feedback.

Paul Brown, Jr., an Ohio resident, was forty-six years old. He was also unemployed, weighed over four hundred pounds, and lived in a basement. He had accounts with AOL, Prodigy, and CompuServe. Mary (a hypothetical name for the young girl involved) was twelve when her mother, a schoolteacher, bought her a computer, reportedly because Mary was having problems making friends. When she got online, Mary posted a message on Prodigy, in the spring of 1995, looking for a pen pal.

Kids learn about the dangers of the internet, online chatrooms, instant messaging, social networking sites, situations to avoid and how to keep their identity private. Three PSA's are included. Resources are available in English and Spanish.

A Public Service Announcement on Internet Safety. Another one of those alarming clips where a child innocently gives out too much personal information to a stranger online.

Chatroulette, a Web site that connects videochatters with a limitless number of "random strangers" from around the globe, is an Internet sensation -- but it poses unique dangers for minors and new challenges for law enforcement.