Who is Emailing Your Child?
It’s hard to remember how kids managed to learn anything in school in the days before the Internet. Today’s students have access to information on every conceivable topic as close as their PCs, and are now capable of learning at an astonishing rate.
The Internet has also made it possible for kids and their friends to interact online instead of tying up the phone for hours at a time, and the many social networking websites like MySpace, Facebook, and Whyville have become after school and weekend gathering places for kids of all ages. They can hook up with other kids whom they might never have had a chance to meet in person, sharing their common interests and making new friends.
In fact, social networking sites like these are amazingly popular with kids. Email is another way your child can keep in touch with friends or with family that live far away. However, with all the benefits of the internet, there also comes a ton of risks. Children talk to strangers online all the time.
It’s a sad reality of the online world that predators take full advantage of their anonymity to seek out and develop relationships with kids. While your son or daughter may believe he or she is sharing personal information with a kid of the same age and interests somewhere else in the country, the person receiving that information could be a sex offender communicating form an Internet caf in your own community.
Such possibilities are frightening indeed, and even more frightening is the frequency with which they occur. But you, as a parent, can take steps to protect your children by keeping tabs on exactly who is emailing them or communicating with them in online chat rooms.
Begin by having a conversation with your kids about where and when they first encountered different people online. Be especially attentive if you know your child has self-esteem issues, because predators are highly skilled at finding kids with low self-confidence and taking as much time as they need to build a sense of trust in those kids. They then take advantage of that trust in the most unimaginable ways.
As a concerned parent, you’ll be delighted to know that there are now several websites which will enable you to find out who is sending email to your kids. All they require is that you enter the email address from which the questionable communications are being sent. No name, address, or other identifying information is necessary.
After logging in to one of these websites and typing the email address into the search box, you’ll be given not only the identity, but also the address and phone number of the person who sent it. You will also be given access to other important background information on this person, including Federal or state arrest records and criminal convictions, and will be informed if the individual is a sex offender.
Your role as a parent is both the most difficult and most rewarding one you will ever play. By taking responsibility for your kids’ safety on the Internet, you will be going a very long way toward keeping them safe in your own home!