Youth and Internet Pornography Statistics

This is part 7 of our statistics series.

  • Of students aged 13 and 14 from schools across Alberta, Canada, 90 percent of males and 70 percent of females reported accessing sexually explicit media content at least once. (Thompson, Sonya. “Study Shows 1 in 3 Boys Heavy Porn Users”. University of Alberta Study, 5 March 2007, keys=porn-rural-teens.)
  • Of students aged 13 and 14 from schools across Alberta, Canada, 4 percent reported viewing pornography on the Internet; 41 percent saw it on video or DVD and 57 percent saw it on a specialty TV channel. (Thompson, Sonya. “Study Shows 1 in 3 Boys Heavy Porn Users”. University of Alberta Study, 5 March 2007, keys=porn-rural-teens.)
  • The study revealed that boys do the majority of deliberate viewing, and a significant minority now plans social time around viewing porn with male friends. (Thompson, Sonya. “Study Shows 1 in 3 Boys Heavy Porn Users”. University of Alberta Study, 5 March 2007, keys=porn-rural-teens.)
  • Porn has become a major presence in the lives of youth, and while a majority of teens surveys said their parents expressed concern about sexual content, that concern has not led to discussion or supervision, and few parents are using available technology to block sexual content. (Thompson, Sonya. “Study Shows 1 in 3 Boys Heavy Porn Users”. University of Alberta Study, 5 March 2007, keys=porn-rural-teens.)
  • The author of the study, Sonya Thompson concluded that parents need to improve dialogue with their children and their own awareness level. They need to be the ones setting the boundaries in the house. (Thompson, Sonya. “Study Shows 1 in 3 Boys Heavy Porn Users”. University of Alberta Study, 5 March 2007, keys=porn-rural-teens.)
  • Overall, boys aged 13 and 14 living in rural areas are the most likely of their age group to access pornography. (Thompson, Sonya. “Study Shows 1 in 3 Boys Heavy Porn Users”. University of Alberta Study, 5 March 2007, keys=porn-rural-teens.)
  • Forty-two percent of Internet users aged 10 to 17 surveyed said they had seen online pornography in a recent 12-month span. Of those, 66 percent said they did not want to view the images and had not sought them out. The survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points. The results come from a telephone survey of 1,500 Internet users aged 10 to 17 conducted in 2005, with their parents’ consent. (Wolak, Janis, et al. “Unwanted and Wanted Exposure to Online Pornography in a National Sample of Youth Internet Users.” Pediatrics 119 (2007); 247-257.)
  • In the survey, most kids who reported unwanted exposure were aged 13 to 17. Still, sizable numbers of 10- and 11-year-olds also had unwanted exposure — 17 percent of boys and 16 percent of girls that age. (Wolak, Janis, et al. “Unwanted and Wanted Exposure to Online Pornography in a National Sample of Youth Internet Users.” Pediatrics 119 (2007); 247-257.)
  • More than one-third of 16- and 17-year-old boys surveyed said they had intentionally visited X-rated sites in the past year. Among girls the same age, 8 percent had done so. (Wolak, Janis, et al. “Unwanted and Wanted Exposure to Online Pornography in a National Sample of Youth Internet Users.” Pediatrics 119 (2007); 247-257.)
  • Overall, 34 percent had unwanted exposure to online pornography, up from 25 percent in a similar survey conducted in 1999 and 2000. (Wolak, Janis, et al. “Unwanted and Wanted Exposure to Online Pornography in a National Sample of Youth Internet Users.” Pediatrics 119 (2007); 247-257.)
  • Online use that put kids at the highest risk for unwanted exposure to pornography was using file-sharing programs to download images. However, they also stumbled onto X-rated images through other “normal” Internet use, the researchers said, including talking online with friends, visiting chat rooms and playing games. (Wolak, Janis, et al. “Unwanted and Wanted Exposure to Online Pornography in a National Sample of Youth Internet Users.” Pediatrics 119 (2007); 247-257.)
  • Filtering and blocking software helped prevent exposure, but was not 100 percent effective, the researchers said. (Wolak, Janis, et al. “Unwanted and Wanted Exposure to Online Pornography in a National Sample of Youth Internet Users.” Pediatrics 119 (2007); 247-257.)In 2000, more than one-third of youth Internet users (34 percent) saw sexual material online they did not want to see in the past year compared to one-quarter (25 percent) in 2005 (Online Victimization of Youth: Five Years Later. 2006. National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, Crimes Against Children Research Center, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. December 4, 2006. pdf/CV138.pdf).
  • More than three-quarters of the unwanted exposures (79 percent) happened at home. Nine (9) percent happened at school, 5 percent happened at friends’ homes, and 5 percent happened in other places including libraries (Online Victimization of Youth: Five Years Later. 2006. National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, Crimes Against Children Research Center, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. December 4, 2006. pdf/CV138.pdf).
  • According to a New Zealand Internal Affairs study, the largest single age group viewing child pornography is young people aged 15 to 19, accounting for a quarter of 202 convicted child porn users. (New Zealand’s Department of Internal Affairs. Internet Traders of Child Pornography: Profiling Research. By Caroline Sullivan. October 2005. January 10, 2006. polingupdate2.pdf
  • 70 percent have accidentally come across pornography on the Web (Generation M: Media in the Lives of 8-18 Year-Olds. Victoria Rideout, Donald F. Roberts. Ulla G. Foehr. March 2005. The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. 17 November 2006, 18-Year-olds-Report.pdf).
  • More than 11 million teens regularly view porn online (”Protecting Kids Online.” Editorial, The Washington Post, July 1, 2004).In 26 percent of cases where youth accidentally stumbled into pornographic websites, the youth stated being exposed to another sex website when they were attempting to exit the initial website. (Mitchell, K.J., Finkelhor, D., and Wolak, J. “Victimization of Youths on the Internet.” The Victimization of Children: Emerging Issues, Ed. J.L. Mullings, J.W. Marquart, and D.J. Hartley. New York: Haworth Maltreatment & Trauma Press, 2003).
  • 23 percent of youth were “very” or “extremely” upset by exposures to sexual content online. (Mitchell, K.J., Finkelhor, D., and Wolak, J. “Victimization of Youths on the Internet.” The Victimization of Children: Emerging Issues, Ed. J.L. Mullings, J.W. Marquart, and D.J. Hartley. New York: Haworth Maltreatment & Trauma Press, 2003).
  • Adolescents’ access to sexual and reproductive health information is minimally affected by pornography-blocking software when installed at moderate settings while blocking 90 percent of pornographic content. (Richardson, C.R., Resnick, P.J., Hansen, D.L., Derry, H.A., & Rideout, V.J. “Does pornography-blocking software block access to health information on the Internet?” Journal of the American Medical Association, 288 (22), 2002): 2887-2894).
  • Nine out of 10 children aged between eight and 16 have viewed pornography on the Internet. In most cases, the sex sites were accessed unintentionally when a child, often in the process of doing homework, used a seemingly innocent sounding word to search for information or pictures. (London School of Economics January 2002).

This statistics series is provided by Parental Monitoring Software. We quote and link to sources used whenever possible.

If you find these statistics alarming and you have kids who use the internet, we strongly recommend using a monitoring software product wherever possible.

Youth and General Internet Use Statistics

This is part 6 of our statistics series.

  • Looking at a general picture of teen internet adoption, American teens are more wired now than ever before. According to our latest survey, 93 percent of all Americans between 12 and 17 years old use the internet. In 2004, 87 percent were internet users, and in 2000, 73 percent of teens went online. (Lenhart, Amanda and Madden, Mary. Teens, Privacy, and Online Social Networks. Pew Internet and American Life Project, April 18, 2007. SNS_Report_Final.pdf).
  • Home computers are still overwhelmingly located in open family areas of the home; 74 percent of teens now say the computer they use is in a public place in the home, compared with 73 percent in 2004 and 70 percent in 2000. (Lenhart, Amanda and Madden, Mary. Teens, Privacy, and Online Social Networks. Pew Internet and American Life Project, April 18, 2007 SNS_Report_Final.pdf).
  • A large majority of teens (71 percent) have established online profiles (including those on social networking sites such as MySpace, Friendster and Xanga), up from 61 percent in 2006. (National teen Internet survey was funded by Cox Communications in partnership with NCMEC and John Walsh and was conducted in March 2007 among 1,070 teens age 13 to 17. The research was conducted online by TRU. survey_results_2007.ppt).
  • 65 percent of high school students admit to unsafe, inappropriate, or illegal activities online (Market Wire. November 6, 2006. i-SAFE Inc. December 12, 2006 release_id=180330).
  • 38 percent of high school students sometimes hide their online activities from their parents (Market Wire. November 6, 2006. i-SAFE Inc. December 12, 2006 release_id=180330).
  • The risks to children, particularly teenagers, in cyberspace include exposure to unwanted exposure to sexual material (1 in 3 youth) and harassment — threatening or other offensive behavior directed at them (1 in 11 youth). (Online Victimization of Youth: Five Years Later. 2006. National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, Crimes Against Children Research Center, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. December 4, 2006. pdf/CV138.pdf).
  • 31 percent of 7th to 12th-graders pretended to be older to get onto a website. (Generation M: Media in the Lives of 8-18 Year-Olds. Victoria Rideout, Donald F. Roberts. Ulla G. Foehr. March 2005. The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. 17 November 2006, 18-Year-olds-Report.pdf).
  • Nearly one-third (31percent) of 8- to 18-year-olds have a computer in their bedroom, and one in five (20 percent) have an Internet connection there (Generation M: Media in the Lives of 8-18 Year-Olds. Victoria Rideout, Donald F. Roberts. Ulla G. Foehr. March 2005. The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. 17 November 2006, 18-Year-olds-Report.pdf).
  • Three in four (74 percent) young people have a home Internet connection (31 percent have high-speed access). Nearly one-third (31 percent) have a computer in their bedroom, and one in five (20 percent) have an Internet connection there. In a typical day, about half of young people (48 percent) go online from home, 20 percent from school, and 16 percent from someplace else (Generation M: Media in the Lives of 8-18 Year-Olds. Victoria Rideout, Donald F. Roberts. Ulla G. Foehr. March 2005. The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. 17 November 2006, 18-Year-olds-Report.pdf).
  • Among the 96 percent of young people who have ever gone online, 65 percent say they go online most often from home, 14 percent from school, 7 percent from a friend’s house, and 2 percent from a library or other location (Generation M: Media in the Lives of 8-18 Year-Olds. Victoria Rideout, Donald F. Roberts. Ulla G. Foehr. March 2005. The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. 17 November 2006, 18-Year-olds-Report.pdf).
  • One in ten young people (13 percent) reports having a handheld device that connects to the Internet (The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation Study, March 2005).
  • The most common recreational activities young people engage in on the computer are playing games and communicating through instant messaging (Generation M: Media in the Lives of 8-18 Year-Olds. (Victoria Rideout, Donald F. Roberts, Ulla G. Foehr. March 2005. The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. 17 November 2006, 18-Year-olds-Report.pdf).

This statistics series is provided by Parental Monitoring Software. We quote and link to sources used whenever possible.

If you find these statistics alarming and you have kids who use the internet, we strongly recommend using a monitoring software product wherever possible.

Online Sexual Predators Statistics

This is part 5 of our statistics series.

  • Internet pedophiles are increasingly adopting counter-intelligence techniques to protect themselves from being traced (National Criminal Intelligence Service, 8/21/03).
  • Forty percent of people charged with child pornography also sexually abuse children, police say. But finding the predators and identifying the victims are daunting tasks (Reuters, 2003).
  • One in five children who use computer chatrooms has been approached over the Internet by pedophiles. (Detective Chief Superintendent Keith Akerman, Telegraph.co.uk January 2002).
  • 13 million youth use Instant Messaging. (Pew Study reported in JAMA, 6/01).

This statistics series is provided by Parental Monitoring Software. We quote and link to sources used whenever possible.

If you find these statistics alarming and you have kids who use the internet, we strongly recommend using a monitoring software product wherever possible.

Mobile Cellphone Porn Use Statistics

This is part 4 of our statistics series.

  • In 2005, worldwide revenue from mobile phone pornography is expected to rise to $1 billion and could grow to three times that number or more within a few years (Bryan-Low, Cassel and Pringle, David. “Sex Cells: Wireless Operators Find That Racy Cellphone Video Drives Surge in Broadband Use.” The Wall Street Journal. May 12, 2005.)
  • According to IDC, a technology research firm, by the end of 2004 approximately 21 million 5- to 19-year-olds had wireless phones.
  • Adult content on mobile telephones and other portable devices is anticipated to hit $1 billion in worldwide revenues during 2005, according to market research firm Juniper Research. (Juniper Research, “Adult to Mobile: Personal Services,” February 2005)
  • The Juniper report said a 50 percent hike in mobile porn revenues for 2005 over 2004 is likeliest to come from Europe and the Asia-Pacific regions, but by 2009 the world mobile porn market could well enough hit $2.1 billion. (Juniper Research, “Adult to Mobile: Personal Services,” February 2005)

This statistics series is provided by Parental Monitoring Software. We quote and link to sources used whenever possible.

If you find these statistics alarming and you have kids who use the internet, we strongly recommend using a monitoring software product wherever possible.

Child Sexual Abuse Statistics

This is part 3 of our statistics series.

  • A New Zealand Internal Affairs study suggests that there is an association between viewing child pornography and committing child sexual abuse (New Zealand’s Department of Internal Affairs. Internet Traders of Child Pornography: Profiling Research. By Caroline Sullivan. October 2005. January 10, 2006. Reference Material.
  • A study of The American Journal of Preventive Medicine found that one in six men reported being sexually abused as children. Almost 40 percent of the perpetrators were female (Long-Term Consequences of Childhood Sexual Abuse by Gender of Victim. Volume 28, Issue 5. The American Journal of Preventive Medicine. June 2005). Reference.
  • One in four women reported childhood sexual abuse and in most cases perpetrated by males (Long-Term Consequences of Childhood Sexual Abuse by Gender of Victim. Volume 28, Issue 5. The American Journal of Preventive Medicine. June 2005). Reference.

This statistics series is provided by Parental Monitoring Software. We quote and link to sources used whenever possible.

If you find these statistics alarming and you have kids who use the internet, we strongly recommend using a monitoring software product wherever possible.

Child Pornography Statistics

This is part 2 of our statistics series.

  • The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children revealed, in a June 2005 study, that 40% of arrested child pornography possessors had both sexually victimized children and were in possession of child pornography (also known as “dual offenders”). Both crimes were discovered in the same investigation. Another 15% were “dual offenders” who tried to victimize children by soliciting undercover investigators who posed as minors online. Overall 36% of “dual offenders” showed or gave child pornography to identified victims or undercover investigators posing as minors online. Of those arrested in the U.S. for the possession of child pornography between 2000 and 2001, 83% had images involving children between ages 6 and 12; 39% had images involving children between ages 3 and 5; and 19% had images of infants and toddlers under age 3 (National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Child Pornography Possessors Arrested in Internet-Related Crimes: Findings from the National Juvenile Online Victimization Study. Virginia: National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, 2005).
  • According to a National Children’s Homes report, the number of Internet child pornography images has increased 1500% since 1988. Approximately 20% of all Internet pornography involves children (National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Internet Sex Crimes Against Minors: The Response of Law Enforcement. Virginia: National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, 2003).
  • Child pornography has become a $3 billion annual industry.
  • According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), child pornography reports increased 39% in 2004. Ernie Allen, president and CEO of NCMEC, states that the statistics show a significant and steady increase in child pornography reports for the seventh year. More than 20,000 images of child pornography are posted on the Internet every week (National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, 10/8/03). More babies and toddlers are appearing on the net and the abuse is getting worse. It is more torturous and sadistic than it was before. The typical age of children is between six and 12, but the profile is getting younger (Prof. Max Taylor, Combating Pedophile Information Networks in Europe, March 2003).

This statistics series is provided by Parental Monitoring Software. We quote and link to sources used whenever possible.

If you find these statistics alarming and you have kids who use the internet, we strongly recommend using a monitoring software product wherever possible.

Internet Pornography Statistics

Feel safe with your kids browsing the internet? You shouldn’t, at least not without any protection. Here are some interesting internet pornography statistics you should know about:

  • Two in five Internet users visited an adult site in August of 2005, according to tracking by comScore Media Metrix.
  • 87% of university students polled have virtual sex mainly using Instant Messenger, webcam, and telephone (”CampusKiss and Tell” University and College Sex Survey. Released on February 14, 2006. CampusKiss.com. February 17, 2006. See poll results.)
  • According to comScore Media Metrix, there were 63.4 million unique visitors to adult websites in December of 2005, reaching 37.2% of the Internet audience.
  • By the end of 2004, there were 420 million pages of pornography, and it is believed that the majority of these websites are owned by less than 50 companies (LaRue, Jan. “Obscenity and the First Amendment.” Summit on Pornography. Rayburn House Office Building. Room 2322. May 19, 2005).
  • The pornography industry generates $12 billion dollars in annual revenue - larger than the combined annual revenues of ABC, NBC, and CBS. Of that, the Internet pornography industry generates $2.5 billion dollars in annual revenue. (Pornography Statistics. Family Safe Media. January 10, 2006. Reference
  • The largest group of viewers of Internet porn is children between ages 12 and 17 Family Safe Media, December 15, 2005 .
  • According to comScore Media Metrix, Internet users viewed over 15 billion pages of adult content in August 2005.
  • According to comScore Media Metrix, Internet users spent an average of 14.6 minutes per day viewing adult content online.

This is why we strongly recommend using some sort of internet filtering, privacy, and spyware blocking application at all times. For monitoring your children online, we recommend SpyAgent Monitoring Software.

This statistics series is provided by Parental Monitoring Software. We quote and link to sources used whenever possible.

If you find these statistics alarming and you have kids who use the internet, we strongly recommend using a monitoring software product wherever possible.

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Phishing - The act of tricking someone into giving them confidential information or tricking them into doing something that they normally wouldn’t do or shouldn’t do. For example: sending an e-mail to a user falsely claiming to be an established legitimate enterprise in an attempt to scam the user into surrendering private information that will be used for identity theft.

Learn how to protect yourself from any phishing attack on your private accounts. Once you understand what phishing is and after taking Phishing - Take The Quiz!, be sure to explain to all of your kids about the dangers of phishers, phishing attacks, phishing requests, and more.

Remember, under any circumstances, you should never provide any login details including username or password to anyone, even if it looks official. When in doubt, call the company in question directly to check legitimacy.

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SpyAgent Antivirus Detection

Recently we’ve received quite a few inquiries about our SpyAgent Monitoring Software.

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SpyAgent is constantly monitored for virus detection in all of the major antivirus software programs out there such as Norton Anti-Virus (NAV), AntiVir, NOD32, Avast and AVG.

We will routinely update SpyAgent to avoid detection when you first install it. After installation, we strongly recommend configuring your antivirus to exclude SpyAgent from being detected on your system. Once this is done, you shouldn’t have any problems with running an anti-virus and monitoring your kids online.

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It is detected due to its keylogger capabilities. If someone were to install this software on a computer that isn’t authorized by the owner, the owner has the right to know about it and therefore, the antivirus companies target all retail monitoring software applications, not just ours.

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