Parents Learn About Online Safety
By: TAMMIE SLOUP, http://www.mywebtimes.com/
Parents, get with the times.
That was Sarah Migas' opening message during a presentation about online safety Thursday night at Ottawa Township High School.
Social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook and Internet chat rooms and instant messaging are becoming increasingly popular means for children and teenagers to socialize. While they have their positives, digital technology also can be dangerous.
"Kids are seeing the Internet as the wild wild West," said Migas, an Internet safety specialist with the Illinois Attorney General's Office.
Migas and Daniel Spillman, assistant attorney general with the high tech crimes bureau, talked to a handful of audience members, introducing what they referred to as a "travel guide" for parents to navigate their way through some of these social networking sites and learn the languages being used by children to communicate.
Migas said acronyms often are used amongst bloggers and instant messengers and are not always familiar to parents, who should be monitoring their children's online activities.
Parents, get with the times.
That was Sarah Migas' opening message during a presentation about online safety Thursday night at Ottawa Township High School.
Social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook and Internet chat rooms and instant messaging are becoming increasingly popular means for children and teenagers to socialize. While they have their positives, digital technology also can be dangerous.
"Kids are seeing the Internet as the wild wild West," said Migas, an Internet safety specialist with the Illinois Attorney General's Office.
Migas and Daniel Spillman, assistant attorney general with the high tech crimes bureau, talked to a handful of audience members, introducing what they referred to as a "travel guide" for parents to navigate their way through some of these social networking sites and learn the languages being used by children to communicate.
Migas said acronyms often are used amongst bloggers and instant messengers and are not always familiar to parents, who should be monitoring their children's online activities.
For the complete story - click here.
Internet acronyms parents should know:
AITR: Adult In The Room
P911: Parent Emergency
PAW: Parents Are Watching
PIR: Parent In Room
POS: Parent Over Shoulder
MOS: Mom Over Shoulder
MIRL: Meet In Real Life
S2R: Send To Receive (pictures)
CD9: Code 9 (parents are around)
E or X: Ecstasy (the drug)
ASL(R P): Age Sex Location (Race / Picture)
TDTM: Talk Dirty To Me
******************************************
As a Parent Advocate, this is information that today's parents need to be aware of. Being an educated parent can you keep your children safe online.
Then Internet has a lot of great qualities, but you still need to put safety first.
