PHOENIX — The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office launched a website to help educate parents on how to protect their children from online predators, Maricopa County Attorney Rachell Mitchell announced at a press conference on Wednesday.
The site called “Report Don’t Repost: Cyber Predators, Real Risks” provides guardians with practical tools, current data and expert advice to help them understand predator tactics, spot red flags and know how to act fast. The website will be available in Spanish and updated regularly.
“Our goal is to empower parents to take action by having the necessary tools to protect their children from these growing threats,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell also warned about the instant messaging forum Discord, which she said has turned into a “predator’s playground.”
There were more than 546,000 reports of children being groomed for sex acts to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in 2024. That’s an increase of 192% from 2023 and 578% from 2022.
Last month, Gov. Katie Hobbs also signed into law a bill that changed the definition of dangerous crimes against children to include attempts to lure minors, even if they’re actually undercover cops.
What does the website tell parents to do about online predators?
Here are the do’s and don’ts for how to handle an online predator:
Don’t:
- Block the perpetrator.
- Delete anything.
- Report it to the platform until police say it’s ok.
Do:
- Report it to police right away.
- Put your child’s phone in airplane mode and lock down all other devices.
- Submit a report to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at CyberTipline.org or 1-800-THE-LOST.
“Technology can help you monitor your child’s activity online, but it cannot do the job for you. Nothing will take your place in building a relationship with your child,” said Mitchell.
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