| Because of the perceived anonymity of the
Internet, police are finding that where criminals were largely
held in check by their community standards in the past, those
crimes may be more easily committed today. Fraud, identity
theft, credit card scams, sexual molestation, and other crimes
are being facilitated via the Internet.
A typical scenario might be, someone in Ohio gets victimized
by someone in Washington. The same criminal may have also
victimized someone else in Idaho, Massachusetts, and Florida.
Each person calls 911, and each may get a different response, or
idea about how to handle this, depending upon their local laws
and their local agency's policies and procedures. However, there
is a solution.
The Internet and Your Child recommends that, should you
become the victim of a cyber crime, or you suspect that your
child has become a victim, you call your local agency first. As
a result of over a decade of team building among federal, state,
and local law enforcement officials, your local officer should
know how to handle the case, or refer you to an agency that will
help you.
You can also report child-crimes on the Internet.
www.missingkids.com/cybertip/ is one of the addresses that
will take you to the center for Missing and Exploited Children's
web site. There you will read about many reporting options.
There are also many other sites available. They can be found by
using a search.
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