Social Networking Sites
Social Networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook have changed the way people have communicated with one another.  These sites and others like them allow you to create a profile about yourself and your hobbies.  They allow you to upload images and video for others to see, keep an online diary or weblog (blog), and they allow users to communicate with each other with messages.  The risks of social networking can include the child participating in online correspondence that is inappropriate or sexual in nature.  Involving themselves in those situations and coupled with giving out too much personal information can particularly put children at risk to an “online predator”.  Online predators will specifically target children through research of their online profiles and chats.  Online predators will often lie about their age and true identity.  They will initiate contact with children and begin what’s called the “grooming process”.  The grooming process involves the predator forging a relationship with the child using the child’s interest and hobbies.  They will sympathize with the child’s problems and begin to build their trust.  The relationship might then progress on to phone conversations and then a face to face meeting in which a child can be assaulted. 

Strategies
Place the computer in a central location in your home.  Keep the computer in a visible, high traffic area of your home.  This way you can monitor what is happening and the places your children are going online. 

Encourage your children to keep their online profiles private.  There are ways to set up their online profiles so that only trusted friends can view their page. 

Keep information private!  Make sure that your child does not post any personal identifying information that others could use to locate them.  Things like address, phone number, and school names should be discouraged. 
Keep a safe screenname.  Discourage the use of sexually expressive screennames.  Make sure your child’s screenname does not include any personal identifying information such as their last name, gender or location. Go online with your kids and have them show you what they are doing.  Get to know the information that they are putting online. 

Talk to your kids about the dangers that can be associated with putting too much personal information online.
Encourage children to talk to you if they receive messages or begin a relationship online with someone they have never met before.  If the messages become inappropriate or sexually explicit, make sure your child feels comfortable about approaching you and letting you know that this has happened.  Contact the authorities if someone is being sexually explicit with your child online.

Encourage your child to never meet someone they have met online in real life without your permission first.  If you do allow them to meet an online friend in person, go with them.