Webcam danger: who's watching?

When I bought my new computer I was pleasantly surprised to find that it came with a webcam. The novelty quickly wore off, and it was soon packed away. However, it now appears that webcams are posing a danger to many unsuspecting young people.

I have grown used to warning young people about the dangers of putting images of themselves on the Internet; it seems common for young men in particular to emulate their rap idols like Soulja Boy (pictured) by taking shirtless, hip hop style photos, exposing their six-packs. They post these pictures on teen chat sites, thinking that they are showing off to their friends; however, there are often others watching, as 13 year old Justin Berry found out.

When Justin hooked up a webcam to his PC in order to chat to other teens he soon found himself being propositioned by a man who offered him $50 to take his shirt off. He thought nothing of it; after all, he regularly wore less at the pool. Things didn't stop there; soon he was undressing completely, showering, and even masturbating in front of his webcam for money. Over 5 years he earned hundreds of thousands of dollars from over 1500 people, all without his mother suspecting. The New York Times says that Justin’s story sheds light on the dark side of the internet. It reports that minors, often under the online instruction of adults, are opening paid-for pornography sites featuring their own images captured for the internet by inexpensive webcams. They perform from the privacy of home, while parents are near by, unaware of what's going on beyond their children’s bedroom doors.

Justin's advice to parents whose children have a webcam: "Throw it in the trash as fast as you can. You're letting strangers into your kids' bedrooms. They should be out having fun, playing with other kids. It screwed me up bad!"

Justin's story is far from unique. The UK's Child Exploitation and Online Protection Agency (CEOP) says it has been receiving a growing number of reports of unsolicited requests to young people asking them to perform sex shows on their webcams.

Nick was 16 when he set up a personal profile on a social networking website — something an estimated nine out of 10 teenagers now do. It wasn't long before people he didn't know were getting in touch and asking him to go on his webcam. "They said: 'I could pay you if you want.' I was like, 'OK, fair enough.' If there's a bit of money involved, there's a bit of incentive." By creating a profile on a popular website, Nick has become one of the growing number of "camgirls" and "camboys" offering webcam sex shows for money. As with many other teenagers, Nick's computer and his webcam are in his bedroom. Nick remembers why he was tempted the first time someone suggested paying him. "The Xbox 360 had just come out and games were about $60. "I was thinking, 'If I could do this on a regular basis, I could have a lot of games'."

CEOP warns that children without a means of being paid money online are being engaged with the offer of credits for on gaming sites, in particular, to commit sexual acts on webcam.

One in five 10-17 year olds is sexually solicited online every year. Many parents use Internet filtering software to protect their children from accessing unwanted websites. Filters use regularly updated list of undesirable sites and block access to them.

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