Sites such as Bebo, Facebook , Hi5, etc are useful social networking and collaborative sites for adults. However, there are real dangers involved. Most have an age restriction – usually R14 years but this is easily got around.

Almost every week there is a news item or T.V. show highlighting the dangers of predatory people – usually older men, grooming young girls for wrongful intent. They create their own online personas to lure girls into eventually meeting up with them.

The Sunday Star Times of 9th May carried a two page article about an older man who lured 15 young Indian girls by a false identity on the Internet, got them to send him candid photos of themselves, then blackmailed them with exposure to their parents. He was convicted of raping 15 of them but it is believed there were probably twice this number. (One of the girls attempted suicide).

I urge all parents to use their common sense, don’t let young children have Facebook accounts and monitor their computer usage.