Police To Teach Students

About Internet Safety

By Andrew Gorosko

Town police plan to teach Newtown Middle School students about the dangers posed by Internet predators.

Detective Robert Tvardzik and Youth Officer Dana Schubert received specialized training on the topic October 3 at the state police forensics laboratory in Meriden.

The Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force formulated the educational program to warn children about the dangers posed by sexual predators who victimize children on the Internet. Such predators use the Internet to identify and make contact with potential child victims.

The program also informs children about the hazards of disclosing sensitive personal information about themselves and their families to people they meet online.

The task force is comprised of law enforcement agencies, the state’s attorney’s office, victims’ advocates, and educators. The task force has federal, state, and local elements. Tony Larson, a Newtown Middle School teacher, is a member of the task force.

The instructional program, which is now being organized on the local level, will target fifth graders.

“We found the training was very informative and we learned quite a bit,” said Det Tvardzik.

“We honed our skills,” Officer Schubert said.

The program informs children about the hazards of Internet use to prevent problems from occurring, the youth officer pointed out.

“It gives them the tools to keep safe on the Internet,” Det Tvardzik said.

The two police officers will present one-hour instructional sessions to fifth-graders on how to protect themselves from being victimized by Internet predators, said Acting Police Chief Michael Kehoe. The program will be provided as school scheduling allows, he said. The program is subject to review by school officials.

Of the threats posed by Internet predators, Acting Chief Kehoe said, “It’s not a big problem in Newtown. We’re trying to be preventative.”

“This [Internet crime] is a burgeoning problem nationwide… Law enforcement is trying to catch up with this technology,” he said.

“This technology has come so far,” he said, adding that parents may not understand the implications of their children’s Internet usage, and may not realize how children can potentially unwittingly provide sensitive family information to Internet predators, leaving themselves and their families open to problems.

“That’s a gap we need to address as a community,” Acting Chief Kehoe said.

The program informs children how to conduct themselves when using an Internet feature known as  “buddy chat,” Det Tvardzik said.

Children should protect their identities and the identities of their families while online, he said. The program will instruct children on how to maintain their anonymity while online.

Officer Schubert said he would like to develop an educational program for parents so those parents can effectively supervise their children’s Internet usage.

 Although adolescents may be skilled in computer use and in Internet use, they are not mature people, and thus may be victimized by others who would seek to exploit them via online interactions, according to Det Tvardzik.

“Kids are trusting, and they’re exploring the limits… They’re going to explore what’s out there,” Officer Schubert said.

“If one child becomes a victim, that’s one too many,” Det Tvardzik said.

“Prevention is the key. We don’t want any victims. None,” Officer Schubert said.

“This [Internet] is a whole law enforcement area in itself. Education is going to be the key,” Det Tvardzik said, noting that crimes against children on the Internet are only one aspect of Internet crime. Law enforcement agencies across the nation are becoming better versed in the Internet to deal with the problems posed by electronic crime, he said.

Unlike the past, when child predators may simply have loitered at playgrounds in seeking out children to exploit, child predators now are electronically able to target children via the Internet, Officer Schubert said.