Strangers
with Electronic Candy
Visitors Since
October 15, 2001.
Past Articles
* Computer Security
* Foreign Espionage
* Industrial Espionage
* Personal Security
* Personnel Security
* Physical Security
* Security Management
Other Security Links
E-Mail Us
* ASIS
* NCMS
* VSAC
* Webmaster
We join with those who mourn the loss of life, the injuries, and the disruption of lives caused by the attacks against Washington, DC, and New York, N.Y. All those effected -- the brave people who helped in rescue efforts, those involved in America's response to terror and in the war with Iraq-- are in our thoughts and prayers.
Aerospace Corporation
Vandenberg AFB, CA
For years, we have been telling children to avoid adults hanging around school yards offering candy and a ride home. Two recent incidents have dramatically focused attention on the fact that the warning is also valid on the Information Super Highway.
* Daniel Montgomery, a 15 year old from Maple Valley, WA, left home in May, 1995, using a ticket apparently provided by “Damien Starr,” a man he had met via e-mail. Daniel was found alone in the San Francisco airport several weeks later. Daniel maintains he was not harmed; his parents don’t know whether to believe that or not.
* Tara Noble, a 13 year old from St. Matthews, KY, was lured away from home by “George” from San Francisco. After being missing for 13 days, she called her parents and the FBI on June 11, 1995. She was reunited with her family the next day. Before she returned to Kentucky, Tara Noble told reporters about the dangers of cyberspace. “It’s not what you think,” she said. On-line prowlers “just want one thing. They want you.”
Despite the publicity surrounding these and other cases, parents should not panic. Ernie Allen, Executive Director for the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, estimates that there have been 10-12 “fairly high-profile cases” like Montgomery’s and Noble’s during the last year. However, there are over 800,000 American children reported missing annually. It is not clear that children are at greater risk on-line than they are during other activities.
The lesson for parents is plain. Just making sure your children are at home, or limiting the time they spend on the computer, is not enough. Here are a couple of steps you can take to protect your kids:
1. America Online, CompuServe, and the other on-line services allow parents, when they set up accounts for their children, to block out access to “chat rooms,” like the gay and lesbian interactive discussion group where Daniel first made contact with Damien Starr. Do it.
2. If your children dial into local Bulletin Board Services, see if they have similar options. Look around that BBS yourself. The Systems Operators (SysOps) of many boards prohibit pornography; others cater to people seeking pornographic images and an anonymous way to meet new people.
3. Caution children not to give our personal information on-line. This includes addresses, telephone numbers, or school locations.
4. Encourage children to report any communication, from cyberspace or anywhyere else, that makes them uncomfortable.
5. If your children talk about personally meeting a cyberspace friend, insist on going along for the first meeting.
The recent publicity in southern California about kids and the Internet need not panic parents. They serve as a reminder that everywhere out there has its dangerous hangouts and its bad actors. Parents can readily protect their children from them.
[Webmaster's Note: This article was originally written in June 1995 for the VSAC News.]