GILMER COUNTY, Ga.- The Gilmer County Sheriff’s Office has issued a public service announcement on internet safety for children.
The days of stranger danger with the man parked down the street, in the van, attempting to lure your child with candy are not gone, BUT it’s not the true reality or even the biggest threat our children face, it’s INTERNET SAFETY. With all the technology surrounding our children these days, the “strangers” are already in our homes.
It’s so important to monitor the technology (phones, tablets, computers gaming systems, etc) that we give our children but it’s even more important TO HAVE CONVERSATIONS (often), even the difficult ones, with our children about technology and what is and is not appropriate to post, comment, share and produce. Sextortion is one of the biggest threats our children are experiencing right now.
GBI receives multiple reports a day! Please, please, please, take the time in the car, on the way to school, while eating dinner, on a walk, playing outside, watching t.v., or any chance you get to educate those around you. Law enforcement can only do so much and unfortunately, in many of these sextortion cases, the perpetrators live outside the US!
The sheriff’s office and GBI released a video that can be found at
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Important Message about the Threat that Faces our Children – Sextortion is a dangerous form of exploitation where children are blackmailed online into sending explicit images of themselves. The sheriff’s office has partnered with the
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children to create this warning message about sextortion and what children can do if they have been targeted.