A mandated reporter is someone who is required to report suspected or disclosed cases of abuse to child protective services or law enforcement including a wide range of persons from teachers, educators, coaches, to school and parish staff, and clergy. The mandated repo...

The federal TAKE IT DOWN Act was recently signed into law. It criminalizes the publication of nonconsensual intimate images, including AI-generated images. Anyone who publishes or threatens to publish such images online can be charged with a crime and prosecuted. Websi...

With the widespread use of mobile devices, more and more children are susceptible to cyber bullying, which has far-reaching consequences. Cyber bullying can take many forms, including cruel messages via text or social media, the distribution of photoshopped pictures de...

Back-to-school season is an ideal time to refresh internet safety rules with the children in your care. For example, it is helpful to establish clear guidelines like what types of sites children can visit, apps they can download, and when they can have access to electr...

Having a healthy caution towards adults means requiring all adults to follow safety rules, outlined in policies or codes of conduct, no matter what position they hold in an organization. Adults must also be willing to look at their own behavior and ensure that it is al...

As your children head back to school, parents should begin laying the groundwork (if they haven’t already) for open communication about the school’s safety guidelines and policies. Talk to children about safe adults and keep lines of communication open about who they s...

Studies show that when children know that adults are willing to believe them, and advocate for them, children are more willing to come to adults with their problems. This is why other safe adults, like teachers and youth ministry volunteers, are essential to child prot...

Everyone that works and interacts with children should have clear boundaries in place. This can include rules like: staying in public view and avoiding isolated one-on-one situations with children and ensuring that two or more adults are always paired together to work ...

Statistically, one in four children will experience some form of abuse – sexual, physical, emotional or neglect – during their childhood. Sadly, most child abuse goes either unnoticed or unreported, due to fear, a lack of knowledge in what constitutes abuse, or a reluc...

School-aged children should be taught about the dangers of sexual abuse, and the signs of risky situations that could lead to potential abuse. Sexual abuse and exploitation does not only happen through in-person touch; it can happen online or through the phone as well....