Protecting Your Child from Online Pornography

Your child can be exposed to online porn intentionally or by accident. A child can type something as simple as "cat" in a search engine and pull up dozens of pornographic sites. You have to pay attention to your child's actions while on the computer. There are ways to reduce the chance of accidental exposure of porn.

The Internet has made it very easy for children to view pornography anytime, night, or day. A survey in 2006 revealed that adolescents from 10 to 17 said they had viewed pornography in a 12-month span. Forty-two percent of those stated they had actually sought out pornography, but 66 percent said they were not attempting to view porn and it just popped up on the computer screen.

By using email or visiting websites, children can be prompted into using into viewing pornography. Many are sent "Spam" emails that contain explicit pictures tempting them to go to the website. Pop-up windows can appear on websites that appear innocent, inviting them to visit hardcore sites, as soon as you close one window another opens. Many porn sites offer a free tour and all you have to do to gain entrance is click on a button verifying you are over 18.

Online pornography is defined as images of naked people or people having sex. Online use that puts kids at the highest risk for unsolicited exposure to pornography is the use of file-sharing programs to download images. They may be downloading what seems to appear as innocent images of bands or celebrities, but unknowingly being passed along adult images. Filtering and blocking software can help prevent exposure but it is not always a 100 percent affective.

Statistical data taken from numerous surveys reveal:

· From March to June 2005, the majority of kids who reported unwanted exposure to pornography were aged 13 to 17.

· 17 percent of boys and 16 percent of girls were exposed to unsolicited pornography.

· Overall, 34 percent had been exposed to unwanted adult images; this also includes some children who had willingly viewed pornography in other instances.

Children's exposure, especially to pornography considered violent, is leading to an increased violence in their social relationships and is molding unhealthy attitudes to both relationships and sex. Watching violent or extreme pornography teaches boys that rape can be an acceptable for of sex.

The most effective way to restrict children's exposure to Internet pornography is to require Internet Service Providers (ISP) to filter all content. This would not restrict adults from viewing pornography, adults could select not to use the filtering process provided by the ISP. Pornographic websites could be required to have stricter control over entrance to the sites. There are some Internet Service Providers cater to families by filtering all pornographic sites.

Internet Service Providers that have family friendly filtering:

CleanNet www.cleannet.net

CleanWeb www.cleanweb.net

Family Based Internet www.safeplace.net
Family Internet www.familyinternet.net
Family Online Network www.fam.net
Integrity Online www.integrityonline.com