Parent warns of predator
Father says 13-year-old son propositioned on Facebook for nude photos; schools issue warning
John McFadden
Northern News Services
Friday, March 13, 2015
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
The father of a 13-year-old boy is warning parents to beware of an online predator on Facebook seeking nude photos of young boys.
City school boards issued a warning to parents about somebody purporting to be a 16-year-old girl on Facebook, asking boys for nude pictures of themselves. - Walter Strong/NNSL photo illustration
A snippet of a Facebook conversation reconstructed from consecutive screen-grabs of what a Yellowknife parent believes was a
dialogue between a possible predator operating under an assumed identity (Courtney) and the parent's child on Facebook. Names of the youths involved have been blanked out. "Courtney's" last name has also been blanked out. - Walter Strong/NNSL graphic illustration |
The man, who wished to remain anonymous, said the person, purporting to be female, asked his son for nude pictures of himself on two occasions, once earlier this month and back in January.
He said at least four of his son's friends had also been contacted through Facebook with the same request, as far back as September of last year. He said the Facebook account the messages came from has apparently since been deleted.
"I'm completely disgusted by this. This is a predator, preying on children," the man said. "They could do harm to these kids that could never be taken back."
Yellowknife's three school boards posted urgent messages to parents on their websites, Facebook and Twitter pages this week about a possible Internet luring case. The message states RCMP has informed school officials that someone has been posing as a 16-year-old girl on social media and inviting young boys in the city to post nude pictures of themselves as well as meet up with her.
School board officials have asked staff to review Internet safety with their students and parents to have a discussion with their children.
RCMP Const. Elenore Sturko said someone had recently contacted police with concerns that a person who had been in contact with their child over social media was not who they said they were and that they were possibly an adult posing as a 16-year-old.
"We don't know whether or not the person involved is a 16-year-old," said Sturko. "We have not yet confirmed that this is a case of Internet child luring. We sent out the family Internet safety tips because whether this is a case of child luring or not, families should be cautious about their Internet activity."
RCMP initially contacted school principals who let their superintendents know about it. The superintendents of Yellowknife Education District No. 1, Yellowknife Catholic Schools and Commission scolaire francophone then met and decided on a course of action which included the dissemination of the urgent message.
Internet safety
"Anything that has to do with the safety of our children is very important," said Claudia Parker, superintendent of Yellowknife Catholic Schools. She said regardless of this latest urgent alert teachers do educate students about Internet safety from Grade 4 and up.
"The children have access to the Internet and it's so easy for them to get connected with the wrong person and it's very difficult to monitor everything that a child is doing on the Internet so it's important to educate them so that they are making smart decisions," said Parker.
Yk1 superintendent Metro Huculak said district schools also teach Internet safety in the classroom but added this latest memo is mainly directed at parents.
"It appears they're going after middle school kids or high school kids, not the very young kids" he said. "But I think it's more that parents need to know. Middle school kids especially need to be aware of this, but all parents need to be aware that when their kids get on the Internet they have got to make sure what their kids are getting into."
Huculak said educators and parents must work together to make sure kids are safe from people who may try to lure them online.
"It's very easy for someone to get on and encourage kids who are sometimes very vulnerable to get involved in something like this," said Huculak.
In a news release, Sturko stated the prevalence of social media has changed communications for all Canadians, including children. It is not uncommon for kids to have profiles and spend time online with their peers. New technologies have brought a new level of connectivity, but have also brought unique safety challenges into families, she stated.
Cyber bullying, child luring and child exploitation can be intimidating topics for parents to think about; However, raising awareness on these subjects can be an important tool in protecting the entire family, she stated.
