Congress takes on 'sexting': Bill offers $175M over 5 years to boost Internet safety
Herb Jackson - The Record (Hackensack, NJ)Issue date: 5/14/09 Section: Real News
Menendez said students need to know how to avoid sexual predators, identity thieves and even possible criminal penalties for sharing sexually explicit photos of themselves or others.
Teachers and school administrators also need to be trained how to react when they discover students have been sharing nude photos of each other through social networking sites or cell phone images.
An online poll conducted by cosmogirl.com and the National Center to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy found 20 percent of teens had sent or posted nude or semi-nude photos of themselves and 33 percent were sending or posting suggestive messages.
"As Internet access becomes even more widespread, we can't afford to have young people roam cyberspace without giving them the basic tools of good sense, individual responsibility and respect that we teach them to use offline," Menendez said. "These dangers aren't going away. They're only becoming more widespread."
In New Jersey, Attorney General Anne Milgram has concentrated on Internet safety, particularly for young users. Her office developed the Report Abuse! icon, which encourages social networking site visitors to flag potentially dangerous posts and to complain about bullying or other unwanted attention.
Milgram's staff also worked with police investigators and members of the Legislature on a package of bills to protect users from online predators. One measure would reduce the anonymity of Megan's Law registrants. Another would criminalize the communication of sexually suggestive materials. A third would require technicians who repair and maintain computers to report discoveries of child pornography.
Other bills involve stalking, identity theft and similar crimes. In all, the Assembly passed eight of the bills in March; they are awaiting action by Senate lawmakers.
Aftab, a security and privacy lawyer who is also the executive director of WiredSafety, said the New Jersey bills were a good start, but Ohio is considering a bill to address situations where youths sending pictures of themselves face serious criminal charges.
She also said law enforcement needs clearer directions.
"They either overreact or underreact. Justice shouldn't depend on which cop answers the phone that day," she said.
Teachers and school administrators also need to be trained how to react when they discover students have been sharing nude photos of each other through social networking sites or cell phone images.
An online poll conducted by cosmogirl.com and the National Center to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy found 20 percent of teens had sent or posted nude or semi-nude photos of themselves and 33 percent were sending or posting suggestive messages.
"As Internet access becomes even more widespread, we can't afford to have young people roam cyberspace without giving them the basic tools of good sense, individual responsibility and respect that we teach them to use offline," Menendez said. "These dangers aren't going away. They're only becoming more widespread."
In New Jersey, Attorney General Anne Milgram has concentrated on Internet safety, particularly for young users. Her office developed the Report Abuse! icon, which encourages social networking site visitors to flag potentially dangerous posts and to complain about bullying or other unwanted attention.
Milgram's staff also worked with police investigators and members of the Legislature on a package of bills to protect users from online predators. One measure would reduce the anonymity of Megan's Law registrants. Another would criminalize the communication of sexually suggestive materials. A third would require technicians who repair and maintain computers to report discoveries of child pornography.
Other bills involve stalking, identity theft and similar crimes. In all, the Assembly passed eight of the bills in March; they are awaiting action by Senate lawmakers.
Aftab, a security and privacy lawyer who is also the executive director of WiredSafety, said the New Jersey bills were a good start, but Ohio is considering a bill to address situations where youths sending pictures of themselves face serious criminal charges.
She also said law enforcement needs clearer directions.
"They either overreact or underreact. Justice shouldn't depend on which cop answers the phone that day," she said.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
IT Dissertation
posted 7/06/09 @ 7:42 AM MST
"She took her own life when no one would help her stop the harassment," that's interesting!
Lady Jane
posted 10/16/09 @ 5:42 AM MST
I found this article really interesting. Especially since there are teenager around my household.
I came across this site that has really interesting content called the bizymoms Clifton community
Post a Comment