"Web sites that kids frequent very often are also cruised by child predators," said Abbott. "My Cyber Crimes Unit investigators have seen firsthand the dangerous criminals that prey on children and teenagers in Internet chatrooms, personal Web pages, and social networking sites. Parents attending the town hall event can benefit from the experiences of our investigators by learning how to protect their children from those who seek to take advantage of them online."
The Texas Attorney General's office is a national leader in arresting online child predators. The Cyber Crimes Unit, launched by Attorney General Abbott in May 2003, targets online predators by assuming the identities of young teenagers in Internet chat rooms. Investigators have arrested 76 men who used teen chat rooms to arrange meetings with underage victims, with some predators driving hundreds of miles to meet children they met online. The office has also obtained convictions against 39 men on child pornography charges.
At the town hall meeting, Abbott and his Cyber Crimes Unit investigators will outline the risks children face online, the environment teens face online, and the way child predators are using this emerging technology to find victims. The investigators will also offer information and safety tips about online predators and help parents decipher chatroom lingo.
"I especially encourage high school students to participate in our discussion about safely using social networking Web sites like MySpace, Friendster and Xanga without compromising personal information that could unintentionally lead predators to them and their families," Abbott added.
The interactive presentation will provide the audience with an opportunity to ask questions, and attendees will also receive Attorney General Abbott's new "Internet Safety for Parents" video, which offers advice and tangible safeguards to parents on how to spot the warning signs that their children may be giving out too much information to a potential child predator.
The presentation will include straight talk about the issue of online solicitation and some discussions will include mature content. Parents of children of all ages and high school students are strongly encouraged to attend. Students in middle school should attend at their parents' discretion.
For more information, contact the Texas Attorney General's office at 1 (800) 252-8011 or visit the Web site.
