For most kids, summer vacation this year means spending many more hours online. That time is often put to good use. The Internet can be a terrific learning tool, providing access to a wealth of information and interactive learning experiences.

But the Internet can be dangerous. While social networking sites such as MySpace.com and Internet chat rooms allow young people to stay in touch, plan events and get the latest gossip, they can also lead to trouble. Many teens use these sites to post pictures and personal information. They use blogs as their personal diaries and journals for the world to see.

Unfortunately, sexual predators are among the people lurking on the Internet. Even the smartest children may not realize that everyone with Internet access, including predators, can see the pictures and personal information they post and twist that information for sinister ends.

This past school year, my staff and I visited 45 middle schools and Boys and Girls Clubs across Arizona talking to nearly 15,000 students, parents and teachers about Internet Safety. According to the students, most spend between two and six hours a day online! The majority said their parents had no idea what they were doing.

Most middle school students knew all about social networking sites and had pages on MySpace.com, even when they were years short of the site’s minimum age requirement of 14. I learned that students are often quick to add new names as “friends,” thus removing important security features and divulging personal information to strangers. There are reportedly 182 million subscribers on MySpace.com. Among these millions are many who do not hesitate to paint a false picture of themselves in order to get close to young people and try to arrange a face-to-face meeting.

Cyberbullying is another hazard now appearing on social networking sites. Kids no longer need muscles to bully and torment their peers. Some young people use Web sites, cell phones, instant messaging, chat rooms, blogs and other cyberspace options to harass, threaten and ridicule. What may start as a joke, once launched into cyberspace, can be very serious. The impact on the victim can be devastating and even tragic. The bully may find they have committed a crime, exposed their parents to liability and/or damaged their own prospects for college or a job.

Some Internet safety tips:

I have put together a helpful brochure, Do You Know What Your Child is Doing Online?: A Guide to Internet Safety for Parents and Educators. It is available on the Attorney General’s Web site at www.azag.gov. Printed copies are also available by calling 602.542.2123.

June is Internet Safety Month – but let’s be cyber-safe all year!

Terry Goddard