Guest Columnist
Stay on guard online
By George Winner

One of the earliest and most noteworthy achievements of the 2007 legislative session was the resolution of a long-simmering debate at the Capitol to keep sexually violent predators off the streets for longer periods of time through a process known as civil confinement.

Last year's new law created a state Office of Sex Offender Management to develop standards for the evaluation, treatment and management of sex offenders. Civil confinement's overriding goal is to keep our citizens out of the reach of our worst sexual predators.

So I'm glad to report that at the beginning of the 2008 legislative session we may be on the verge of yet another significant action in this arena of public safety, one that more fully recognizes the danger our kids face from online sexual predators.

Both houses of the state Legislature have recently joined state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo to advance the most comprehensive legislation in America to combat sexual predators on the Internet. It's being called the Electronic Security and Targeting of Online Predators (e-STOP) Act, and I'm looking forward to the opportunity to vote in favor of its enactment into law as quickly as possible.

The e-STOP Act takes aim at the No. 1 danger on the Internet by strengthening protections against sexual predators on popular social networking sites, restricting certain sex offenders' use of the Internet, and updating Megan's Law for the Internet age.

The e-STOP Act will strengthen the hand of law enforcement and parents. It needs to become law.

Attorney General Cuomo, who has been doing groundbreaking work on this issue, said, "With the Internet, sexual predators have found an ideal tool to prey on the innocent with anonymity. While government has enacted dramatic protections from sex offenders in recent years, existing laws have not kept pace with the rapid advances in technology."

In fact it's become crystal clear that our current laws have not kept pace with the ability of online predators to abuse the Internet. Investigations have revealed that tens of thousands of sex offenders nationwide have signed on to at least one of the most popular social networking sites, MySpace and Facebook.

Among other provisions, e-STOP will require sex offenders to register their email addresses, instant message screen names and other online identifiers with the state Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS). Online social networking companies will be able to access this DCJS information so that they can prescreen and block access by convicted sex offenders, as well as notify law enforcement authorities of potential violations of law and threats to public safety.

According to the division, there are nearly 25,000 registered sex offenders in New York State. More than 6,500 of these offenders are classified as level-3, or those who pose the highest risk of committing another sex crime.

The president of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children said,

There are more than 627,000 registered sex offenders in the United States today, many of whom use the relative anonymity of the Internet to seek access to potential child victims. We are grateful to Attorney General Cuomo and New York legislative leaders for the introduction of this vital, bipartisan legislation."

MySpace and Facebook have already taken leadership roles in improving the safety of their users. Now they're encouraging the enactment of the e- STOP Act to put in place further safety principles and safeguards that will, they believe, make the Internet an even safer place.

I applaud every effort to promote safety in today's "online" society -- particularly for our children and young people. It's also important to keep in mind that parents are a key part of the first line of defense when it comes to online computer safety.

Where can a parent turn for advice? A few organizations stand out.

For example, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children web site, www.ncmec.org, offers an impressive array of child safety information, including information specifically related to online computer safety. The attorney general's web site, www.oag.state.ny.us, also offers valuable tips.

As well, I'm glad to provide computer safety information through my own offices. Contact me to request a copy of a popular Senate brochure, "Online Computer Safety." This publication includes helpful hints for parents in establishing online rules and to spot the warning signs that a child might be at-risk. It also provides a list of "Rules for Online Safety" that can be clipped and kept near the home computer. At the very least, it's a good starting point for becoming better informed.

The writer represents the 53rd District in the New York state Senate