Millions of people in the UK are joining the Internet revolution. Going online opens up a world of opportunity. But the information superhighway has a darker side. Crime Reporter Joanne Earp reports.

MODERN TECHNOLOGY has allowed children to design their own website, sending their picture and personal details around the world.

Sounds good doesn't it? Not according to American legal web expert Parry Aftab, who says what we are actually creating is a catalogue for paedophiles.

As manager of Cyberangels, a website helping youngsters use the Internet safely, she deals with thousands of complaints a month about cyber-stalking.

All the cases relate to incidents in the United States. But the 49-year-old mother-of-two believes its won't be long before the UK follows suit.

She said: "There is some dangerous and disgusting stuff out there and our aim is to teach kids how to deal with it.

"We should be looking at the United States as a model for what is going to happen to other countries in the future."

The warning signs are already there. Parry's visit to Bradford follows an incident in Milton Keynes last week when a 13-year-old girl was duped into meeting a 47-year-old man who claimed to be 18 on an Internet chat room.

She said: "On an Internet chat room you can be whoever you like. You might be a scruffy 47-year-old paedophile in real life - but a cute 15-year-old online.

"These incidents are no longer confined to America. We are already arresting paedophiles from the UK who have come to the US to prey on our children.

"The paedophiles are out there in this country, but not as many people use the Internet. As the rates come down people in the UK will be spending more time online."

Salt Grammar will soon be the first school in the country to link up to the Cyberangels website and help spread the word on Internet safety.

Parry said: "One-on-one chat rooms are particularly dangerous, but it is instant messaging where the real risks are. When you sign up to an Internet messenger, you fill out a profile.

"Children often put in their real names, addresses and telephone numbers. Cyber-stalkers and people who want to harass off-line use that information to get to our kids.

"Youngsters should not treat people they meet online as proper friends.

"Creating a personal website can also cause problems. They contain personal details and sometimes a picture of yourself or your family.

"A lot of schools are putting up sites with pictures as well. What we are creating is a catalogue for paedophiles."

She says children can be confronted with a variety of potentially damaging things when going online, such as misinformation, pornographic images and even bullying. "There are sites giving step by step guides to bomb building. That kind of information may already be available in libraries, but kids wouldn't know where to find it.

"Now you can log-on in your own home, type in a subject and away you go - the Internet is an equal opportunities offender.

"Those kids who want to do the right thing and stay away from dangerous sites can be conned. Innocuous sounding sites with common addresses can be full of porn."

The Cyberangels organisation has 4,000 members worldwide. And Parry has penned a book giving advice to parents on how to use the Internet safely.

She said: "The problem is children know more about the Internet than their parents.

"When we learn how to cross the road safely or ride a bike without being injured, we look to our parents. But who teaches children about the danger of the Internet?"

But she agrees that the Internet is an invaluable resource we shouldn't be afraid of using.

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