Along with many boons and blessings, the internet has also brought with it many evils. And one of the greatest evils it has brought is child pornography.
The internet being a nameless space, people become very bold. The perverted desires which they would otherwise have kept hidden in a social setting, come out when they are on the internet, where no one can find out who they are.
Pedophilia has become one of the greatest problems on the net, and child pornography goes hand in hand with that.
Pedophiles are relatively harmless when they indulge in their strange passion in private, without disturbing or harming anyone else.
But when they begin to target actual real-life children, they become really dangerous and a grave threat to society and public safety.
And child pornography is a tool they use to lure their innocent victims into their traps.
If your child is a so-called latchkey kid, or in other words if she is left alone at home for long periods of time with nothing to do, then he or she runs a great risk of falling victim to this kind of disgusting overture from cyber-criminals.
So, the first step towards battling child pornography is to alter your lifestyle and work schedule in such a way that it allows you to spend more quality time with your child.
Remember, a lonely child is a vulnerable child. She will look for parental guidance, company and protection, and finding none in the real world, she will try to look for substitutes in the cyberspace.
Getting into chat rooms and innocently revealing all about themselves is how most children raise the interest of the head hunters in the first place.
So, nip the problem in its bud and give your child more attention, to prevent them from feeling the need to put themselves in dangerous situations.
But a child of even the most caring and loving parents can sometimes become a victim. So it is best to do regular checks on the files in your child’s computer.
Never mind about his or her right to privacy; it is much more important to find out whether their physical or mental health is in any way threatened by unwanted material.
If you happen to find child pornography on the computer, it is often a good idea not to scold or punish the child, but to talk to them in an open and frank manner.
If you approach them gently, they will often relax and tell you the truth.
But on the other hand, if you shout at them and behave in a threatening manner, they will just shut up and refuse to give you any detail about where they got the material.
Remember, it is not enough to stop your child from viewing pornography you have a duty to society, and you must report the incident, and try to provide the authorities with as much information as possible about the source.
Here’s a list of contact information for a number of countries, where you can report incidents related to child pornography.
Remember, it is not enough to make yourself safe; you have to take a pro-active role to ensure a future that will be free from child pornography.
