Do we really know what lurks behind the darkness of our computer screens? Maybe it's a friend, a family member, a teacher; or what if it's a pedophile? Yes, as much as we wish our world was one of sincere companionship and friendly faces, we must admit, it's not. Just as you would protect yourself from the cold winter weather, you must protect your children from potential dangers of the internet " family" structure found at so many web sites and chat rooms.

The situation has become serious enough for the Federal Trade Commission to issue the "Children's Online Privacy Protection Act." As of April 21, 2000, certain commercial web-sites must obtain parental consent before collecting, using or disclosing personal information from children under the age of 13. Quite honestly, that's not enough protection for our children.

As parents, we have the responsibility to ensure the safety of our children, no matter what! We must realize that the "friend" our child may have found on the web may be a pedophile hiding behind anonymity and actually pretending to be another child themselves. Easily, they can lure in the most innocent of children into their "web."

We also have other ways to protect our own children and those we may come in contact with. Have you created your own web-site to share the love of your family with your internet friends? How many "family" pictures do you have up? Do you list the town you live in, the schools your children attend? You've just invited a pedophile into your life.

As a trucker, do you visit schools and take photos of innocent children? Please remember that you do not know these children, or what their situation might be. There may be a child who is involved in a protection program, or being hidden from a dangerous situation. He or she may be the target of an abusive family member, or some other situation of which you are not aware.

Being concerned for the children, we offer these guidelines....

1. Never show the direct face of any child on the net. This includes not only your own children, but also other family members and friends.

2. Never show a group picture of children from a school visit without the permission of the Principal and parents of the children.

3. If you receive permission from the proper authority, please show the back of the heads of children, never the face.

4. Never give your address or show it on a web site.

5. Never list the school name or town of where the visit took place. By doing this, you may have given information out innocently to a guilty party.

6. Do not list telephone numbers on the sites. This may seem the friendly thing to do; it's just not wise.

These children are our future, and the future of our country. Among them, there may be a future president, or the person who finds a cure for a deadly disease, and yes, a future trucker. Let's do what small part we can in ensuring these children fulfill these destinies.

We invite you to send any comments or additional guidelines you would like to see listed to protect our children. Please send your comments etc. to support@loads.org

November 1999

Postscript

While we are on this subject, L.O.A.D.S. would like to ask that you take a moment to think of our own safety. How safety conscious are we in our internet dealings? Trucker's wives in particular must remember that as tough as we are, we are targets. There are people out there who know the lives we lead leave us alone quite a bit, and may look to prey on that. We have to be careful not to give out too much personal information over the internet, whether it be on a message board or in e-mail to a relative stranger. Phone numbers, addresses, when your husband leaves and where he is headed, all this information is fodder for the opportunistic evil doer who may be watching.