Winthrop Harbor Police Cyber Crimes Unit

To report a crime in progress please call 911

Communication is one of the most effective tools for parents and guardians when helping their children avoid the dangers that exist on the Internet. In accordance with the departments community policing efforts, and to provide educational materials on how to keep children safe from cyber predators, we have accumulated the 'best-of-the-best' internet resources for parents and guardians.

Much like regular daily activities, parents want to watch who their children are communicating with, and what they are doing (online).

One of the best educational resources available is the NetSmartz Workshop provided by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. These are the very same resources our investigators use for presenting to children and parent groups. Netsmartz has a variety of information including 30 - 45 minute presentations and activities for download. Click the NetSmartz graphic on the left to visit the Parent/Guardian portal.

Another great resource from the same group is NetSmartz 411 site, which is advertised as the parents' and guardians' premier online resource for answering questions about Internet Safety, computers and the Web. There is a large searchable database and also provides the ability to submit questions to a NetSmartz411 expert if you can not find the answer you are looking for.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has a one-page Parent's Guide to Internet Safety that contains some very good information and is worth reading through.

SafeKids.com is one of the oldest and most enduring sites for Internet Safety. SafeKids has a lot of tools and tips for families and also has a Family Contract for Online Safety that is free to download and distribute to your family members. The Online Safety Contract provides one more way for parents/guardians to discuss Internet Safety with their children, and also places some of the responsibility on the children to adhere to the terms listed in the contract.

Microsoft products, particularly the Windows Vista and the upcoming Windows 7 operating systems have parental controls built in. These should be activated if any children (ages 5 - 18) are using the computer to access the Internet. Click here for details on how to apply those settings. Check our Resources page for more information from Microsoft.

If you need help with any of these resources, have questions, or would like to suggest additional parent/guardian information you may have found, please feel free to contact us.


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