Internet Safety and the Future GenerationJoin now to read essay Internet Safety and the Future GenerationInternet Safety and the Future GenerationDeveloping computer skills is vital for today’s children. Computers have become an important means for communication, play an important role in nearly every job, and can enhance both education and general quality of life (Rupley, 2004). The difficulty with children using the computer is that some people online may use computers to gain access to children for inappropriate and even criminal reasons. Children, by their nature, will not have the skills on their own to avoid the dangers that can come with internet access, so it is up to parents and educators both to protect children and to teach them how to keep themselves safe online.
The risks to children are very real. The FBI reports that one in five children receive pornography or are solicited by sexual predators online at some point (McKinley, 2002). By the time they are teenagers; one in four has been contacted by strangers who want to meet them in real life (Rupley, 2004). Since the Internet is now used more than the telephone, and since most children are not supervised all the time they are online (McKinley, 2002), predators attempt to exploit their vulnerability. Very often the children and teens, underestimating the risk, unaware of the risk, or believing that they can avoid being victimized, get online while they are supposed to be asleep. They may talk with strangers as well as people they know (Rupley, 2004).
Whether the predators seek to sell pornography or to meet in person, they are all too often successful. In 2003, John Zuccarini pled guilty under the federal “Truth in Domain Names Act.” Using over 3,000 domain names that mimicked TV shows youth often watch, such as www.teltubbies.com, he misdirected children to sites containing hard-core pornography (Rupley, 2004). In a more disturbing case, in 2001 a 13-year old girl left to meet her online “boyfriend” at a local fast-food restaurant. He was actually a 25 year old man, and he killed her (McKinley, 2002).
When children cannot fully protect themselves, it is up to the adults around them to act, which is what AOL executive Teri Schroeder did. She realized that young people were contacting AOL about the problem of adults inappropriately approaching them online. They didn’t go to their parents because they were afraid that their parents wouldn’t let them use the computer any longer (McKinley, 2002). Schroeder investigated how predators lured these kids away from monitored discussions into unsupervised, private chat rooms, and founded “I-Safe,” a non-profit group designed to teach young people how to stay safe while online. Congress responded to her actions and provided funds for school outreach programs. I-SAFE teaches educators how to help protect the students in their charge. It also works with community leaders to promote safety online for children and teenagers (McKinley, 2002).
In addition to using the training available from I-SAFE, schools can take a number of actions that will help protect their students as they use the Internet, setting policies in place that can dramatically the risk of online predators at school. For instance, since most internet predators contact youth through chats and instant messages, many schools block those methods of communication (Aftab, 2004). Such specific rules should be part of the district’s “acceptable use” policy. Rules regarding the use of computers and access to the Internet should be spelled out in writing, read carefully, and signed by both parents and students. The policy should include the consequences for breaking the rules as well as exactly what a student should do to report any problem (Aftab, 2004). If the parent will not sign a permission slip stating that they and the child have reviewed the rules, the school
is not allowed access to the Internet.
3.1 Information that is not clearly documented
It means that most online behavior is not recorded, and for many parents and students that might be important in deciding which to remove. Such information is even needed for child safety and a child’s educational progress. Some states have restrictions on the information they can access in child safety and academic activities. However, there have also been reports that some people have access to this information when they are not allowed to access a secure Internet site at any time. In addition to the parents who should not access a protected child’s computer system, the state of California has made specific exceptions for those who use a locked computer system. The California Privacy Act requires that privacy authorities monitor and report all potential and imminent child abuse of digital information and that they are required to notify the California Supreme Court if a child, who is over eight years of age who is not protected by a “preventable or reasonably foreseeable liability” defense, uses a personal computer without parental or legal permission. Some California states also restrict the use of non-secure Internet services as well as access to child safety activities in their jurisdiction (Garden, 2008, pp. 3-4; State of California Public Schools, 2009, p. 20).” California State Public Schools’s decision not to comply with state privacy law requires us to take every necessary step to preserve the right to privacy that is an important component of California’s child safety system. But the California Legislature has not shown urgency in enforcing the law, making this act the only statutory remedy we can take.
3.1.1. Encryption of user data
It is important to note for most parents that encryption is an important part of their computer program. Encryption is a common feature of children’s computers in some instances and is used to authenticate other users in the presence of certain password keys. However, the privacy laws that many parents rely upon to protect their child prevent school users from gaining access to encrypted data to circumvent the school-sponsored policies of accessing information from any of their private network accounts. In addition, parents must know where their son will or should reside in their home and that any changes to his or her computer security system and the child’s access to the Internet will be monitored. The California government has provided the following information about what kind of information will be collected by school security authorities concerning the child’s location and access to the Internet:
A private, government-issued password and a personal, private password;
A private number, number, or password (for the privacy of the school-issued school system);
When a student is accessing the Internet through a secure Internet connection;
If computer security is needed for the school to verify the identity and access to the secure computer system. If the student is accessing the Internet using an accessible personal computer, the child has access to the Internet and will continue to use any program or device that meets the requirements of that school. The California school system also provides the following information about what information may be collected by school security authorities:
The Internet connection where an employee of the school system holds Internet access; and