Nova Scotia mother warns parents after predators targeted child on school laptop

A Nova Scotia woman is warning parents to monitor their children's activity on school laptops after her daughter fell prey to predators on one of them.

Talking to CBC Newsthe woman (whom the publication did not name to protect her daughter's identity) says she discovered inappropriate messages on a Chromebook provided by her 14-year-old girl's school. On it she found “things of a very sexual nature” and “related to self-harm,” as well as messages and conversations with people outside the school system using her child’s school-issued email address.

The mother says she became concerned when she saw cuts on her daughter's arms. She says she has since taken the computer to the RCMP, which led to an investigation by the Internet Child Exploitation Unit (ICE).

Talking to CBC News, Nova Scotia's regional school boards said they have “robust” security features for the laptops they provide to students, but said those protections don't apply when the devices are taken home and connected to different Wi-Fi networks.

Nevertheless, CBC News reports that the mother showed timestamps proving the laptop received inappropriate content both at home and at school. She says she's especially concerned about such cases because neurodivergent children like her daughter may be even more vulnerable.

A mother notes that her child was exposed to predators through Robloxan online game that is especially popular among young people. Over the years, there have been numerous reports of criminals using the platform to target children. There was even a Canadian TVO documentary released earlier this year called Dangerous Games: Roblox and the Metaverse Exposed who looked into it and called for more attention and regulation Roblox. Roblox CEO and co-founder David Baszucki also in a recent interview described the problem of child exploitation on the platform as an “opportunity”.

And this is certainly not a problem unique to online gaming or Nova Scotia. In other provinces, e.g. Ontario And B.C.There are districts that provide laptops to students. While this is undoubtedly a great service to help low-income families, it is still important to monitor how these devices are used.

All this means that parents should closely monitor their children's online activity, even if they are using school-provided devices that they believe are safe. For more information about Robloxin particular, complete Dangerous games The documentary is available for free on TVO YouTube channel And website.

For more support, parents can visit sites such as cybertip.ca (hotline for reporting online child sexual abuse and exploitation) and Netsmartz (offers online safety tips, interactive activities and videos for children, parents and educators). Children can also call the 24-hour Children's Helpline by calling 1-800-668-6868, texting 686868, or visiting organization website.

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Source: CBC News