Praise for CYBERTRAPS FOR THE YOUNG

"This compelling and insightful text draws attention to perhaps one of the most pressing issues within the contemporary American family; the contextualization of adolescent relationships within an increasingly technological and sexualized society. For parents, educators, and students, Cybertraps for the Young may very well be the best tool available to guide behavior and minimize risks in the online world."
- Troy R. Hutchings, PhD, Northern Arizona University

"Evolutions in technology have reshaped the landscape of parenting and educating in the twenty-first century. The risks and rewards of these technologies are demonstrated daily in the media. It is all too often that children are at the center of these stories . . . Parents must take affirmative steps to adequately provide children with support and monitoring necessary to support healthy, responsible use of these technologies. Cybertraps for the Young is the perfect resource."
- Michael Touchette, Vermont Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force

About the Book

We teach knife and appliance safety in home economics; we teach gun safety as a prerequisite for a hunting license; auto safety in driver’s education; and the dangers of sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies in sex ed. The Internet’s potential for misuse, whether through a computer or a mobile phone, is at least as profound as a chef’s knife, a Camaro, or a .22, but our efforts to educate children about Internet safety are far more sporadic and less thorough.

In the most comprehensive book of its kind, Frederick S. Lane, lawyer and computer forensics expert, offers a startling look at the serious legal and criminal penalties children can face as a result of their reckless or inappropriate online activity. Instead of tossing off their graduation caps and entering college or the workforce, a growing number of young adults are spending their formative years defending their reputations against the harsh insult of public humiliation or staring through the double-plated glass of a prison cell; and there is nothing virtual about it.

As Lane skillfully illustrates through a blend of contemporary news reports and disturbing legal cases, the Internet's ready-made forums for exchanging personal information are not only breaking down boundaries of privacy but also facilitating a rising number of criminal convictions for cyberbullying, child pornography, hacking, and copyright infringement. In an effort to combat online misbehavior, schools are instituting strict disciplinary policies, law enforcement agents are tracking peer-to-peer file sharing activity in real time to identify downloaders of child pornography, and both state and federal prosecutors are taking increasingly tough stands against teen offenders.

Even worse than the punitive consequences children may face for their online behavior, Lane writes, are the lasting emotional scars that can lead to tragedy for many young adults and their families. At least a half-dozen suicides have been attributed to sexting; the popular practice of sending naked photos by mobile phone; the most infamous being the 2009 death of Ohio teenager Jesse Logan, who hanged herself after suffering months of harassment and persecution from classmates who saw a nude photo of her distributed electronically by her ex-boyfriend.

As a legal authority on the online world, Lane offers parents, teachers, and school administrators practical strategies to help children communicate with civility online and avoid a growing number of cybertraps that can have devastating consequences with a single click or lapse of judgment. From tips on when and how to install surveillance software, to household technology rules, and guidelines to help parents form community-wide networks, Cybertraps for the Young is essential reading for any parent or educator trying to protect children growing up in the increasingly fast-paced world of social networks and mobile communications.

About the Author

Frederick S. Lane, is an attorney, expert witness, and professional speaker on the legal and cultural implications of emerging technology. He is the author of six books, including American Privacy: The Four-Hundred-Year History of Our Most Contested Right, and has appeared on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, CNN, NBC, ABC, CBS, the BBC, and MSNBC. He is the former chairman of the Burlington (VT) School Board.