MSNBC Dateline:
MSNBC Dateline's Online Predators Report

Statistical Reports:

Internet-initiated Sex Crimes against Minors: Implications for Prevention Based on Findings from a National Study, by Janis Wolak, David Finkelhor and Kimberly J. Mitchell. November 2004.
Click here to download a copy.

Internet Sex Crimes Against Minors: The Response of Law Enforcement, by Janis Wolak, Kimberly J. Mitchell and David Finkelhor. November 2003. National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.
Click here to download a copy.


Facts:

Only 1/3 of the households with Internet access are proactively protecting their children with filtering or blocking software.
Center for Missing and Exploited Children

75% of children are willing to share personal information online about themselves and their family in exchange for goods and services.
eMarketer

About 25 percent of the youth who encountered a sexual approach or solicitation told a parent.
Youth Internet Safety Survey

One in five U.S. teenagers who regularly log on to the Internet say they have received an unwanted sexual solicitation via the Web. Solicitations were defined as requests to engage in sexual activities or sexual talk, or to give personal sexual information.
Crimes Against Children Research Center

One in 33 youth received an aggressive sexual solicitation in the past year. This means a predator asked a young person to meet somewhere, called a young person on the phone, and/or sent the young person correspondence, money, or gifts through the U.S. Postal Service.
Youth Internet Safety Survey

77% of the targets for online preditors were age 14 or older. Another 22% were users ages 10 to 13.
Crimes Against Children Research Center

75 percent of the solicited youth were not troubled, 10 percent did not use chat rooms and 9 percent did not talk to strangers.
Crimes Against Children Research Center

Only 25% of solicited children were distressed by their encounters and told a parent.
Crimes Against Children Research Center

Only 17 percent of youth and 11 percent of parents could name a specific authority, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), CyberTipline, or an Internet service provider, to which they could report an Internet crime.
Youth Internet Safety Survey