Title: Learn more - Online Predators - Articles
Course: Cybersafety

- Challenging Assumptions About Online Predators - Washington Post, January, 2009
Are your kids safe online? A recent report about this sensitive subject is stirring up controversy.

The study, released by Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet & Society, finds that it's far more likely that children will be bullied by their peers than approached by an adult predator online.

- Questioning the Notion of Online Predators - PBS.org, Learning Now, February, 2008
A new study published by the American Psychological Association (APA) raises tough questions about the conventional wisdom regarding online predators. The study takes aim at the mainstream media’s coverage of online predation, labeling its portrayal of the phenomenon as “largely inaccurate.”

- Online predators: Help minimize the risk - Microsoft.com, January, 2007
Using Internet communication tools such as chat rooms, e-mail, and instant messaging can put children at potential risk of encountering online predators.

The anonymity of the Internet means that trust and intimacy can develop quickly online. Predators take advantage of this anonymity to build online relationships with inexperienced young people.

Parents can help protect their kids by becoming aware of the risks related to online communication and being involved in their kids' Internet activities.

- MySpace Boots 90,000 Sex Offenders - AP, February 2009
About 90,000 sex offenders have been identified and removed from the social networking Web site MySpace, company and law enforcement officials said Tuesday.