Publicity about online predators* sex offenders who use the Internet to meet juvenile victims has raised considerable alarm about the extent to which Internet use may be putting children and adolescents at risk for sexual abuse and exploitation. Media stories and Internet safety messages have raised fears by describing violent offenders who use the Internet to prey on naïve children by tricking them into face‐to‐face meetings or tracking them down through information posted online. Law enforcement has mobilized on a number of fronts, setting up task forces to identify and prosecute online predators, developing undercover operations, and urging social networking sites to protect young users.
