Real Life Stories

Threats

When a 17-year-old girl accessed her Instant Messenger (IM) program, she was confronted by someone who advised her that they were a hacker. He threatened the girl that if she did not show her breasts on webcam, he would delete all of her contacts and send viruses to her computer. The girl complied and showed her breasts on webcam. The suspect then threatened that he would post the video of her breasts online if she did not show him her buttocks. After the girl complied with the second request, he threatened her again saying that she needed to show him her vagina, at which point she deleted him as a contact. Two weeks later, the girl was contacted by the man again. The girl confided in her parents who immediately got the police involved.

What does this mean?

Sexual offenders may hijack IM accounts and coerce adolescents to send nude or partially-clothed images of themselves. Adolescents may not realize that photos or videos can be reproduced, altered, posted online or sent to others without their permission. Once material is sent online, control over what happens with the material is lost, and subsequent exposure of the adolescent can be devastating.

What can I do?

  • Set the expectation that you will monitor your adolescent's IM activities. Know your adolescent's login information for their IM account, and review your adolescent's IM logs.

  • What username has your adolescent given her/himself? Does it provide any identifying characteristics about her/him or her/his hobbies (e.g. shygirl, bookworm, etc.)?

  • Ensure that your adolescent's IM program is set up so that no one can speak to her/him without permission. Teach your adolescent about adding friends only if they have already met them in person. Reinforce the idea that not everyone is who they say they are online - people can pretend to be older or younger than they actually are.

  • Explain to your adolescent that s/he should never comply with threats. If someone threatens her/him online, s/he needs to tell a safe adult. Make sure your adolescent knows to stop any conversation that makes her/him feel uncomfortable and tell a safe adult.

  • Monitor webcam use and any posting or exchanging of pictures online. Explain that pictures should not be sent or posted online without parental permission. Once sent, control over what happens to the picture is lost. Check your adolescent's files in "My Pictures" to see what images are being sent, received, and saved by your child.

If your adolescent comes across something or someone that makes him/her feel uncomfortable, explain that s/he can tell you without fear of losing computer privileges.

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