In light of how much -- and how bold -- kids are online today, all parents need to be armed with more realistic strategies and guidance. And it is essential that teens hear the stories of other young people who were deceived or had close calls online.
Unfortunately, child predators know this and use the anonymity of the Internet. The findings were a real wakeup call for us, and they should be for parents, too.
I wish that Internet safety could be taught at every middle school in the country, over two, three or four class periods.
We knew that child predators posed a problem to young people on the Web, but we were stunned to learn the vast numbers of teens engaging in incredibly risky behaviors online.
Kids have access to computers in so many places. You can't police it anymore. You have to communicate with children and children have to be able to communicate with their parents.
