By Carolyn Davies, Contributing Content Blogger

AVG Technologies (Anti-Virus-Guard) held a summit meeting to discuss a variety of important topics concerning evolving safety concerns for children on the internet. Below I've shared a very good teaser clip highlighting some of what was discussed during the meeting. Good information to have.

Will US Lose Control Of WWW?

By Carolyn Davies, Contributing Content Blogger

This is an interesting video that offers interesting questions. Brazil is taking the lead in challenging the US on how the internet will be controlled. Online privacy is central to the issue which could have impacts on the way US based social media, and other entities, will be organised and operate in the future. Please watch and share.

Parental Responsibility in Raising Responsible Internet Users

By: David Simms, Senior Contributor

The internet has exploded with bullying, harassment, and other hate activity that has taken the lives of many and effectively crippled the lives of so many more. What has created such a havoc-ridden climate?  Small children are mostly influenced, whether they believe it or not, by the adults in their lives. From them they learn manners, right from wrong, and how to interact with the world. They are formed by watching what adults do and how they treat others. This has been going on since the beginning of time and is why parenting is such a critical responsibility accountable not only to the family unit but to all those we come in contact with throughout life. It can be monumentally confusing to a child when they witness their parent or other respected adult, treat others harshly and with disrespect especially if they are not accustomed to this. It only takes one event to rock the sensitive and impressionable reality of a child. Children can intrinsically sense something wrong about inconsistent behaviours they observe. Unfortunately, if they are exposed to this on a regular basis, their own inner compass of right and wrong can be overridden. This is usually the beginning of acting out in the same manner they have seen in adults and is typically reinforced by other children they interact with at school and may lead to physical bullying others. Realistically though, most children do not become playground bullies because most of us shy away from physical aggression. 

However, the internet lends itself as an easy platform on which to release passive aggression on others. It is this reason it has become so dangerous.  Children, and adults, who would normally never be involved in physical confrontation, become the most aggressive and cruel creatures when online. This is seeded in the experiences they had, and the observations they made, when a younger age.  It is also coupled with the fact that the internet world is perceived as detached, almost as a fantasy game where people, feelings, and lives are not real. This makes for a dangerous recipe and outlet for aggression and harm to others.

As adults raising children in the computer age, there is a new and unexpected responsibility incurred. We must educate children from a very young age that the online world is a very real place where people can be harmed.  Children must be made to understand that their actions online can hurt and destroy others and that it is not acceptable, just as it is not acceptable to harm others in the street. They must know there are rules to abide by that cannot be broken and that they will be held accountable for what they do online. Adults must be more aware of their own actions in front of children.  It is only in these ways that positive change can occur and a true difference can be made.

An Australian Study on Stalking

By David Simms, Senior Contributor

A study was done on convicted stalkers in an Australian mental health unit. It was determined there were 5 distinct types based on predominant behaviours and the context in which the stalking occurred.  There was also a psychiatric diagnosis made on all subjects involved. This categorisation is now applied to cyber stalkers as their actions and motivations are identical. 

1) The Rejected stalker is one who has already had an intimate relationship with the victim and is not accepting the relationship coming to an end. Their behaviour is expressed as a blend of revenge and a desire to reconcile with the victim.

2) The Intimacy seeker stalker is one who tries to have a relationship with a person they have been fixated on and thinks reciprocates their feelings.   

3)  The Incompetent suitor stalker is someone who wants to develop relationships but they are usually socially incompetent and intellectually challenged to the point a healthy relationship is impossible. 

4) Resentful stalkers are those that harass their target to intentionally cause fear out of the want to pay back for the wrongs they perceive were done to them by the victim. 

5) Predatory stalkers are those who gather personal information and observe a target in anticipation of a sexual attack.

No matter how we look at it, someone who possesses a stalker mentality, regardless of type, is a potential threat. It is true these characteristics have been among us since the beginning of civilisation but with the creation of the world wide web, it allows these deviancies to manifest in ways we could never have anticipated. The internet stalker can be argued to be a much more menacing presence than a real-world one mainly because of the 24/7 access they have to their victim.  Staking someone out online is technically much easier.  Whereas a stalker in the physical world has the obstacles of getting around to keep track of their target and also the much higher risk of being identified and caught, online stalkers can remain in the comfort of their anonymity without leaving home. Being able to trace where a person goes on the internet tells troves of information about them. It is commonly claimed by victims that stalkers get into their minds.  This is one of the reasons they are so dangerous. Because they are able to play with people’s reality, it can have devastating effects in other areas of their lives.  It also can easily become a lifelong trauma for the victim.  Even if their cyber stalker is apprehended and the activity ceases, a victim must carry distrust and self-doubt when it comes to interacting with anyone in the future.

Understanding Cyber Stalking

By David Simms, Senior Contributor

Cyber stalking is when a person’s privacy is invaded and they are followed and pursued online. It is a form of harassment, and can disrupt the life of the victim and leave them feeling very afraid and threatened. Typically, the cyber stalker's victim is inexperienced or relatively new to the internet therefore being unfamiliar with taking certain precautions when dealing with others online. Cyber stalker’s main targets are mostly females, children, or those perceived as emotionally weak or unstable. Although there are many statistics showing trends and numbers of those affected, they are largely inaccurate as a high percentage of cases go unreported. As bad as the phenomenon appears to be, we are seeing only the tip of the iceberg.  Many children who are harassed will not report it in fear of being targeted all the more as  tattletales. Adults may be even less likely to report due to extreme embarrassment in their workplace or at home with their families where they are viewed as protector. This fact makes it especially difficult for men and only intensifies the damaging effects.  

There are generally two types of cyber stalking situations that arise.  One is when the activity begins online and remains online. This can have devastating effects on a victim’s mental state depending on their personal situation and could ultimately end in suicide. The other type is when activity begins online and transfers to physical stalking. Obviously this ratchets the danger to a whole new level compounding the distress felt by a victim.  The motivations of a cyber stalker can originate from several places. It could be from an argument that got out of hand leading to some kind of need by the stalker to seek revenge on you. This could be the result of something you may have innocently said or done online that gave the wrong perception. Although many revenge stalking cases begin with some kind of provoking argument, they can begin for no reason at all leaving a victim clueless as to how they were targeted and why. In many situations neither the victim nor the stalker will know each other. A victim may be chosen at random for the stalker to unleash pent up hate and frustration resulting from an unrelated matter. Unbelievably, there are also stalkers who want to show off their skills to themselves and their friends.  They are simply doing it for fun without any realisation of the terror and damage they are causing to another life. Most people who receive threats online imagine their harasser to be large and powerful, but in fact the threat may be coming from a child who does not really have any means of carrying out the physical threats made.  But having said this, a victim should always take threats and harassment seriously. As laws become more effective in dealing with this troubling area of crime, perpetrators will be less able to hide behind their computer screens. It is my belief we will see a dramatic decrease in cyber crimes when people are fearful of being caught and held accountable for what they are doing.