The Problem:
Children are inadvertently being exposed to adult or pornographic materials when they surf the Internet.
If children misspell a word when typing in a website address, they may be directed to an adult site that has obtained a 'nearly identical' domain name, due to the traffic on the 'real' site.
In the past, when a missing children's organization did not receive notification that their domain name had expired, they discovered that a pornographic site had obtained the domain name because the missing children's organization web-site name had been receiving significant hits. People looking to contact the organization by innocently accessing the domain name were surprised and tramatized when they were directed to an x-rated site.
This same scenerio has happened to other 'family-friendly' business sites that had substantial SEO (Search engine) rankings, and discovered their sites had been obtained by pornographic sites who quickly 'picked up' the domains.
When children inadvertently visit these sites they are immediately and irrevocably exposed to images of a sexually explicit nature; the damage is done.
Alcohol, CDs, DVDs, Movies, video games and even food products are all required to have packaging or rating labels that help consumers identify what is in the item or the appropriateness for use or viewing. Yet websites do not have any warning about what is “inside” the site; anyone can go to a site and be exposed to the material.
The problem will continue to increase as children, at a younger and younger age, are being taught to use the computer in educational settings. Child-focused groups are actively attempting to provide needed educational resources to children in poverty stricken countries by bringing cost-effective, child-friendly computers, in an effort to educate and empower children worldwide. We must, unfortunately, acknowlegde that this same positive humanitarian effort will open the door to greater exposure for children to materials that are harmful, as well.
There is a solution. Click “A White Page” link on the left to read about possible ideas to stop this form of abuse to children. |
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