With stories making the news about children being exploited and extorted through social media, parents are growing increasingly concerned about the online world their child is living in, and how their child can avoid becoming an unfortunate victim of online exploitation.

It doesn't take long for new ideas and technologies to be exploited by criminals for illicit gain, with the internet a hub of criminal activity, predators taking advantage of emerging social media apps, somethings kids are often better versed in than their parents.

Staff Sargent with the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team’s (ALERT) Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) Unit Stephen Camp, says children with low self-esteem can be especially vulnerable when they can go online, as perpetrators can hide behind an anonymous persona, and attempt to extort the victim.

“When they do send pictures there is a request for contact which we’re seeing children actually engage in, and request for pictures and videos that the perpetrator is using for exploitation purposes and extortion. So they will put them online and then when the young boy or young girl is not providing pictures or videos anymore, there is an extortion process that is going on as well, where the perpetrator says, “look you sent me six videos and pictures already, if you don’t send some more I’m going to post everything that you sent to me’”.

Camp says the anonymous nature of the internet can allow vulnerable youth to feel comfortable expressing themselves, seeking out like-minded peers.

However, children in those situations are at risk of becoming the target of predators.  

“Some of them are lonely and they are very vulnerable, so when they have someone giving them some self-esteem, and telling them that they love them, and they like them, and they look great, that’s what they are looking for sometimes and they start sending these pictures. There’s a whole self-esteem component as well that’s part of the education here that these children have to understand that there is other ways to build up their self-esteem and their confidence.”

Parental engagement and awareness, and teaching your kids to avoid strangers online just like in real life, are two ways Camp says you can help ensure your kids have a safe online experience.