Technology is making internet access easier and more dangerous for children.The Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force said the enticements of child exploitations are on the rise.They say with today's technology, the internet can be easily accessed from just about anywhere using small devices like cell phones.
The FBI said parents can protect their children by putting computers in areas where the child is not alone.FBI Special Agent Kevin Damuth said most kids don't know what they're getting themselves into when they chat with strangers.
"It started out as a friendship and sort of evolves into something more than what they had expected," Damuth said. "What we tend to find is that the child starts to gain this trusting relationship, before they know it they end up meeting this individual execting things to go as planed. It sort of turns into a sexual event and of course at that point there's no turning back."The FBI said once the child develops a friendship with a stranger, the child feels like they're betraying their friend if they don't do what their friend asks.
Bryan Fischer of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force said MySpace and Facebook can create problems because a child can receive a friend request from someone they don't know and accept that request."They try to get as many as they possibly can and with that comes dangers of possibly getting somebody added to their particular MySpace page without knowing who they are," Fischer said.
"MySpace can be a very good forum," Damuth said. "Facebook can be a very good forum to interact with people, but again you have to act cautiously."The FBI say while one is not necessarily more dangerous than the other, they have seen more problems with people misusing MySpace than Facebook.
They also want to remind parents to make sure the child can always come to them if they come across something online that makes them feel uncomfortable.