The average paedophile will hurt between 50 and 150 children before the police find out about him. A large and growing number of predators have moved to the internet because they think it is safer and more effective than hanging out in playgrounds and schoolyards. They do this because they think that they can look at the personal profiles that children post on instant message services and lurk in chat rooms without being seen. Every month, more and more sexual predators use the internet to find children to use in the future.
How do people who prey on people online choose who to target? Here are some things that are important:
It's almost a given that internet predators target kids who use computers often and privately. Most of the victims live in suburbs or rural areas, and only a small number of them live in cities.
Children who are online for long periods of time every day, usually at the same time every day, are more likely to be targeted by people who want to hurt them. Predators look for kids whose schedules are similar to their own, like kids who are online most days at the same time. Think about it: Predators are less likely to be able to use a child in the future if that child is online rarely or at different times of the day. Children who don't do much outside of school tend to spend more time online at the same times every day. Internet predators are more likely to go after these kids.
Child molesters on the Internet like it when kids have instant message accounts. Even though some predators use email, many prefer to send instant messages to their victims. Predators know that emails are automatically saved and have to be deleted by hand, but once the instant message window is closed, most instant messages disappear into thin air. By putting instant message monitoring software on their kids' computers, parents can keep a permanent record of their kids' chats. One company that sells this kind of software is PCSentinel Software (www.pcsentinelsoftware.com).
People who want to hurt children use the Internet to find kids who will talk to them. Again, this seems obvious, but predators have to move on from children who won't talk to strangers they haven't met in person. Teach your kids to never talk to someone online that they haven't met in person.
Child predators on the Internet look for kids who are weak, lonely, sheltered, and naive. Predators try to get close to their victims, often by pretending to be kids or teens themselves. They then use this relationship to start sexual conversations or activities or to get the child to meet them in person.
Internet predators feel more confident when they find out a child comes from a single-parent family, is having trouble at school or with the law, or has tried drugs, alcohol, or sexual activity.
Internet predators look for children who put personal information on the internet, like their name, age, photos, gender, a description of how they look, their phone number, address, etc.
Predators on the Internet like to target people who have webcams or digital cameras. Most of the time, predators force children to use these devices to send them pictures of themselves. If a child doesn't have a camera, a predator may send one to the child so that they can take a picture of themselves.
For internet predators to be successful, they need children who won't end the relationship at the first hint of sexual activity. Even if a child who is vulnerable and doesn't have many friends is uncomfortable with sexual talk, they may put up with it because they don't want to lose their new "friend."
Predators on the Internet seem to target people between the ages of 12 and 15. These are the ages when kids are most likely to be tricked into meeting a stranger without telling their parents. This is also when they are discovering their sexuality and independence. People also try to talk to younger and older children, but they tend to be harder to reach as a whole.