Snapchat, Roblox, Session and Discord are all forms of communication kids are using to talk with friends, even strangers. Some happen within gaming systems, others on their cell phones and computers and all of them, if misused, can be very dangerous. Lynn Deddens is the prosecutor overseeing all of Dearborn and Ohio counties in Indiana. She works closely with Detective Derek Stevens and the “Internet Crimes Against Children” Task Force.Stevens says almost every day, he’s getting reports of kids misusing social media. “It’s damage control. By lunchtime, the whole lunchroom has seen it. By afternoon, it’s not uncommon to get calls from other resources from other schools and possibly other counties, because it’s went that far” Stevens said.Talking to adults and strangers is one problem but the growing trend is kids and teenagers using ultra private messaging apps, along with artificial intelligence, putting themselves or other kids in humiliating situations.In the last month, two teenage boys from Mason High School were arrested and charged with creating A.I. porn, using their classmates faces. Stevens said it’s happening everywhere, not just at Mason. “We’ve had incidents where other students are catfishing other students to try to get intimate pictures; whether that leads to a bullying situation, exploitation, you name it,” Stevens said. Last year, a 17-year-old at East Central High School pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including creating A.I. porn, and sharing it on the app Discord. Deddens said the punishment is life-changing. “We got a conviction. He now has to register as a sex offender. And that’s pretty steep when you’re 17, turning 18 years old. You’re going to be on a sex offender registry for 10 years,” Deddens said. So, WLWT wanted to know what parents can do before it gets to that point. Karl Hart is a cybersecurity specialist. For 25 years, he has been trying to stay ahead of the ever-changing social media game. “The apps themselves are perfectly fine. It’s the way they’re being used now,” Hart said. Hart showed WLWT Anchor Sheree Paolello how easy it is to set up a Session account. In less than 15 seconds, Hart created an anonymous account. No name, no email address, no age limit required.The problem detectives and prosecutors are seeing, is most kids think their messages and pictures are private. Hart says, they can be, unless the person on the other ends shares them with someone or screenshots pictures and messages.Here’s the other concern: If any of these websites are misused, tracking down who did it becomes very difficult. “So, the Messenger app that you have is tied to your phone. It’s tied to you, somehow. But Discord, Session, you’re not tied to it any way. There’s no email address, phone number. There’s nothing,” Hart said. The bigger problem for adults is there is always a new tool to communicate. Hart showed Paolello what looks like a calculator app his phone, but when he punches in a secret password, it pulls up a hidden area where pictures and messages can all be stored without anyone else knowing.Hart and Stevens suggest instead of parents being an investigator with technology, talk with kids and start young. “I’ve been on the other side of what happens when they don’t know what to do. That hurts me more than anything” Stevens said. There are apps like Bark, mSpy and Aura that parents can put on their phones, tablets, and some computers to monitor keystrokes, text messages and pictures. But again, experts warn often kids can use another device or another web browser to get around these security apps.
Snapchat, Roblox, Session and Discord are all forms of communication kids are using to talk with friends, even strangers.
Some happen within gaming systems, others on their cell phones and computers and all of them, if misused, can be very dangerous.
Lynn Deddens is the prosecutor overseeing all of Dearborn and Ohio counties in Indiana. She works closely with Detective Derek Stevens and the “Internet Crimes Against Children” Task Force.
Stevens says almost every day, he’s getting reports of kids misusing social media.
“It’s damage control. By lunchtime, the whole lunchroom has seen it. By afternoon, it’s not uncommon to get calls from other resources from other schools and possibly other counties, because it’s went that far” Stevens said.
Talking to adults and strangers is one problem but the growing trend is kids and teenagers using ultra private messaging apps, along with artificial intelligence, putting themselves or other kids in humiliating situations.
In the last month, two teenage boys from Mason High School were arrested and charged with creating A.I. porn, using their classmates faces.
Stevens said it’s happening everywhere, not just at Mason.
“We’ve had incidents where other students are catfishing other students to try to get intimate pictures; whether that leads to a bullying situation, exploitation, you name it,” Stevens said.
Last year, a 17-year-old at East Central High School pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including creating A.I. porn, and sharing it on the app Discord.
Deddens said the punishment is life-changing.
“We got a conviction. He now has to register as a sex offender. And that’s pretty steep when you’re 17, turning 18 years old. You’re going to be on a sex offender registry for 10 years,” Deddens said.
So, WLWT wanted to know what parents can do before it gets to that point.
Karl Hart is a cybersecurity specialist. For 25 years, he has been trying to stay ahead of the ever-changing social media game.
“The apps themselves are perfectly fine. It’s the way they’re being used now,” Hart said.
Hart showed WLWT Anchor Sheree Paolello how easy it is to set up a Session account. In less than 15 seconds, Hart created an anonymous account. No name, no email address, no age limit required.
The problem detectives and prosecutors are seeing, is most kids think their messages and pictures are private. Hart says, they can be, unless the person on the other ends shares them with someone or screenshots pictures and messages.
Here’s the other concern: If any of these websites are misused, tracking down who did it becomes very difficult.
“So, the Messenger app that you have is tied to your phone. It’s tied to you, somehow. But Discord, Session, you’re not tied to it any way. There’s no email address, phone number. There’s nothing,” Hart said.
The bigger problem for adults is there is always a new tool to communicate. Hart showed Paolello what looks like a calculator app his phone, but when he punches in a secret password, it pulls up a hidden area where pictures and messages can all be stored without anyone else knowing.
Hart and Stevens suggest instead of parents being an investigator with technology, talk with kids and start young.
“I’ve been on the other side of what happens when they don’t know what to do. That hurts me more than anything” Stevens said.
There are apps like Bark, mSpy and Aura that parents can put on their phones, tablets, and some computers to monitor keystrokes, text messages and pictures.
But again, experts warn often kids can use another device or another web browser to get around these security apps.
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