There is a new fad on the internet called chat roulette. The biggest name in the game is ChatRoulette.com. Chat roulette is a P2P applet that is run from the web. It accesses your computer’s web cam and allows you to be seen by people randomly matched to you. It doesn’t cost a penny and there is nothing to download. For those of you who are not so tech savvy, P2P stands for peer to peer. During my time spent researching, I logged onto the site many times. About 70% of what I saw was quite indecent. Men with their penises out, masturbation, couples having sex, streaming porn, and more. As an adult, I can simply laugh it off and think how pathetic people can be.
In fairness to the site, they do ask that you are at least 16 and that you show no nudity. They have a button to help report offensive content. Legally, they have covered their butts. On peer to peer apps, the users are solely responsible for the content. Lime Wire, Morpheus and other P2P downloading software ask that you do not download illegal copyrighted files. People still do, but they have washed their hands of it. 
What scares the hell out of me is the fact that the site and sites like it, have gained in popularity. Shock jocks talk about it, radio morning shows talk about it. Chances are your child’s friends are talking about it. The site does not verify a user’s age and anybody can just hop on. You have no idea what is going to show up when you click “start game” and when you click “next”. It’s pretty damn scary to think that a child could be exposed to a man playing with himself.
(screen shot from chatroulette)

As you can see from the photo above, teen girls are in on the action too. Nothing is held back during these sessions. Again, you never know who is going to show up in the chat window. It could be an old man or a young child. Here is another screen shot from chatroulette. Again, these people have no way to tell who they will chat with next. You have zero control over it. Believe me it gets much raunchier than these examples that I have shown you. You can use your imagination if you wish. What Parents Can Do

Today, more than ever before, we leave our homes wide open. The internet is a great tool, but it is also a great means of corruption. A large majority of teens have their own computers at home. They have access to the web and quite often a built in web cam. In the case of chat roulette, you required to have one in order to use the site. Kids can access porn, adult themed chat rooms, and other things all from the comfort and privacy of their bedrooms. Even a computer in the family room isn’t always a safe bet to protect your children from adult material. Not many parents are home when their children get home from school. Summer vacation is another time for children to get themselves into trouble. 
So how can you safe guard your child from things like this? Follow these simple steps to protect your child.

1. Talk to you child about acceptable internet behavior. Make sure you go over internet safety with them. Make sure that they don’t fall victim to pedophiles. The rules that we give our children in the real world are also applicable on the internet.
2. Download a free family friendly browser. They block out explicit content and can be easily configured to allow access to only certain sites. Some good ones are:Glubble For Families(Firefox), KidRocket, KidZui, and Avant Browser. The Avant browser offers separate profiles for different family members. You can customize each one according to age. 
3. Set a password for any computer with internet connection. Your child won’t be able to access windows and won’t be able to run a single thing.
4. If you have a computer with a web cam that is detachable, make sure you only have it connected when you are home.
5. Always maintain access to your child’s on-line account and randomly check his/her e-mail. Be aware that your child could be contacted through the U.S. Mail. Be up front with your child about your access and reasons why.
6. Get to know the Internet and any services your child uses. If you don’t know how to log on, get your child to show you. Have your child show you what he or she does online, and become familiar with all the activities that are available online. Find out if your child has a free web-based E-mail account, such as those offered by Hotmail and Yahoo!® , and learn their user names and passwords.
7. Remember that everything you read online may not be true. Any offer that’s “too good to be true” probably is. Be careful about any offers that involve you going to a meeting, having someone visit your house, or sending money or credit-card information.
8. Make sure your child never gives out any personal information.
9. Be sure to talk to the parents of your child’s friends about their rules regarding the computer. Make them aware of the dangers and make sure they share your concern. If they don’t care, don’t allow your child to hang out at their house.
10. Report cyber crimes by calling your local FBI office or you can file a complaint here.

Always be mindful of the warning signs of your child getting into questionable activities. Some of these include:

Staying up late on multiple occasions
Clicking out of the web browser when you enter the room
Closing chat windows when you are around
Act secretive about their internet activities
Become defensive when you ask them what they are looking at
You begin to get porn pop ups on your computer.(Some sites will secretly install adware onto your computer.)
You’re computer has a virus.
You see unknown long distance numbers on your child’s cellphone bill.
They get mail delivered to the house from names and addresses that you do not recognize.

If you suspect your child of being involved with porn and other things online, talk to them about it. Try to be understanding. Remember, you were young once and curious about sex. Try to be reasonable. Let them off with a warning. Punishing them right away can sometimes make it harder to detect. Try to be fair.
If you suspect your child has engaged in online sexual activity, confront them about it. Check their computer for any signs of dirty talk or pictures. If you plan on buying your child a laptop, make sure it doesn’t have a built in web cam. Not having a web cam can eliminate a lot of temptation. Be sure to install a family friendly browser. Check the laptop from time to time.
If your child has engaged in sexual activities online, they are a victim. Do not punish them severely, especially if they come to you about it. Be sure to contact your local FBI office to report the crime.

More and more it seems like threats to children just keep getting worse. Being involved in your child’s life is one of the best ways to keep them safe. Let them know that they can come to you no matter what. Discuss the dangers with them and make sure they understand that it’s for their safety, not you nagging them. Remember that kids are often more tech savvy than most adults. If you need help finding software to help protect your child, visit your local computer store and talk to some one. Educate yourself on technology. Many communities offer free or low cost computer courses to help you figure out how to use your computer better. Your kids have computer classes in school, you need to be able to keep up with the times.

The bottom line here is that the internet isn’t entirely bad. Parents are indeed to blame for the things they do online. There are plenty of safe guards available to parents to help protect their children. Being involved and having open dialogue about various issues are the best ways to protect your child. The computer is not a babysitter and it was never intended to be one. You can blame the media, video games, and the internet for the decline in morality among children, or you can accept your responsibility as a parent. No video game teaches a child how to kill and no musician puts a gun in your child’s hand. Parents need to be held accountable for their children’s actions. 
There will never be an absolute solution to the problems many children face today. We simply cannot let children live in a protective bubble. The best way to deal with it is through honest discussions with you children. It’s far to easy to pass the buck, be a parent. Monitor what your children get involved with. Better parenting is the only way to a better future.