Spring Break
R.I. middle school principal discusses Internet security issues at Forensic Seminar
Chris Curtis
Issue date: 3/11/08 Section: News
In addition to cyber-stalking, Filippelli said he has seen a drastic increase in "cyber-bullying," the online victimization of young people by their peers.
A typical case of this includes harassment via instant messaging and creating what Filippelli referred to as "hatespaces," pages on social networking sites purporting to belong to the victim of the bullying, which might include doctored photos of the victim.
Based on his experiences, Filippelli estimated that about 60 percent of teenagers experience a form of cyber bullying.
In his research, Filippelli said he has found that girls are more likely to be involved in cyber-bullying and to post inappropriate content online.
"The girls are far outweighing the boys with the objectionable photos, with objectionable comments, etc. on MySpace," Filippelli said. "Very rarely will you find a 15-year-old boy in front of a mirror with a Speedo taking a picture of himself and posting it on his MySpace, whereas we find this constantly with the girls."
The posting of objectionable content can also have negative consequences for college students, Filippelli said. Inappropriate postings on social networking sites can come back to haunt students when they apply for jobs after graduation, he said.
"I guarantee you there is someone out there right-clicking, copying, pasting and keeping in a digital index a record of all the stupid things that everybody does in college," Filippelli said.
Bringing online predators to justice can pose unique challenges for law enforcement, Filippelli said.
Records of instant messaging conversations are stored on the service's host server for up to 72 hours and IP address logs can be accessed for up to 90 days.
Many computer and online records cannot be retrieved once deleted, making it "very important that time is of the essence, that law enforcement move quickly, move quietly," he said.
A typical case of this includes harassment via instant messaging and creating what Filippelli referred to as "hatespaces," pages on social networking sites purporting to belong to the victim of the bullying, which might include doctored photos of the victim.
Based on his experiences, Filippelli estimated that about 60 percent of teenagers experience a form of cyber bullying.
In his research, Filippelli said he has found that girls are more likely to be involved in cyber-bullying and to post inappropriate content online.
"The girls are far outweighing the boys with the objectionable photos, with objectionable comments, etc. on MySpace," Filippelli said. "Very rarely will you find a 15-year-old boy in front of a mirror with a Speedo taking a picture of himself and posting it on his MySpace, whereas we find this constantly with the girls."
The posting of objectionable content can also have negative consequences for college students, Filippelli said. Inappropriate postings on social networking sites can come back to haunt students when they apply for jobs after graduation, he said.
"I guarantee you there is someone out there right-clicking, copying, pasting and keeping in a digital index a record of all the stupid things that everybody does in college," Filippelli said.
Bringing online predators to justice can pose unique challenges for law enforcement, Filippelli said.
Records of instant messaging conversations are stored on the service's host server for up to 72 hours and IP address logs can be accessed for up to 90 days.
Many computer and online records cannot be retrieved once deleted, making it "very important that time is of the essence, that law enforcement move quickly, move quietly," he said.
