Internet users who prey on adolescents and teenagers for offensive reasons are known as online predators. The grooming of children, disrespectful behavior, unwarranted publication of documents and images, cyberbullying, and threatening behavior are a few examples of this. In essence, it is cyberbullying.

Commonly used tools by online predators:

1. Internet social networking sites
2. Using email addresses
3. By way of chat rooms
4. By the grooming procedure

How are they implementing these technologies, and how can we protect ourselves against their strategies?

1. Internet social networking sites
   1. A social networking service is an online platform that users use to create social networks or social connections with others who have similar interests, backgrounds, hobbies, or real-world connections
   2. These websites are used by online predators to establish online friendships, pose as children, try to get your personal information, gradually introduce venereal conversations, and involve you in sensual activity
   3. Precautions:
      1. Always use security precautions like privacy settings and set your profile to have a limited audience
2. Using email addresses
   1. An internet predator gathers the email addresses of kids and starts sending them offensive images and links. They also try to abuse the kids and force them into venereal contact by threatening them, which makes the kids feel uncomfortable
   2. Precautions:
      1. Ignore or delete any emails from users you don’t know
      2. In this circumstance, parents of children ought to step in
      3. Block & report those emails as much as you can
      4. If possible, try to report such cases to the cyber cell
3. By way of chat rooms
   1. This is a part of the Internet where users may converse with one another, typically about a certain subject
   2. But online predators enter chat rooms, start chatting with kids, and attempt to pass themselves off as kids in order to gather personal information, gain the trust of the target audience, and appear to be friends by asking about the target child’s interests, hobbies, and personal photos, requesting private chats, and offering gifts
   3. Sometimes, predators would act extremely kindly and lovingly toward a youngster while subtly introducing sensual elements into their talk and pleading with the child to keep their chat private by not telling their parents. If a youngster doesn’t comply, they may use abuse and threats to coerce them
   4. Precautions:
      1. Don’t disclose private information
      2. Never share a friend’s photo without that person’s consent
      3. Avoid meeting someone you met in a chat room in person
      4. Do not disclose your exact location
      5. View the list of friends
      6. Please avoid turning on the camera if someone forces you to
4. By the grooming procedure
   1. Online grooming is the practice of using the internet to coerce, threaten, or otherwise induce a young person to engage in a venereal activity
   2. Establishes phony relationships, knocks down children’s defenses, and then seeks to meet them in person
5. Signs of Online Grooming:
   1. The kid will be seen utilizing the internet excessively recently
   2. Not disclosing their activities
   3. Erasing their search history
   4. possessing stuff that you obviously did not purchase for them
   5. Turned off the screen if someone tries to look at them
   6. Strangely acting like adults all of a sudden
   7. Precaution:
      1. Do not allow strangers to influence your habits or way of thinking. If you wish to meet an internet buddy, bring your parents along
      2. Never place blame on your children in such a scenario, as it may have a profound impact on them. Instead, reassure them that you are always there for them
      3. Make sure they are aware of how important the matter is so they won’t act inappropriately or repeat it
      4. Assist them in preventing the groomer from using any platform
      5. Use parental controls on any device they are using. Lastly, report anyone who is engaging in abusive or unlawful behavior to the authorities right away

How to prevent online predators?

1. Don’t fear
2. Don’t be scared to say no
3. You should take precautions if someone impresses you online
4. Those who wish to get too personal shouldn’t be spoken to
5. Remember that not everyone is who they claim to be
6. Never plan a meeting with a stranger you met online
7. Notify the parents
8. Take a screenshot of your communication to use as proof, then notify the cyber cell