MillionKids.org Million Kids

THE ACCELERATING WORLD OF TECHNOLOGY AND MAKING SENSE OF :
MASS AUDIENCE LIVE STREAMING
GLOBAL DIGITAL CURRENCY
GEO LOCATION SOFTWARE
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Gone are the days when our kids talk to only people they know online. The past several months have seen an expansion (and explosion) of technologies that it is hard to keep up with. Mass audience live streaming, global digital currency, artificial intelligence, geo location software impacts our kids and puts them on a global stage communicating with thousands of people they will most likely never meet. To get a grasp of just how big the global online community is Opal did some research. Check this out.

Fortnite has 500 Million active accounts.
Roblox has 70 million active daily users.
Roblox has 300 million monthly active users
60% of Roblox users are under 16 yrs old - 52% are males.
Tik Tok has 1.2 Billion users- 150 million users in the U.S.
20% of Tik Tok users in U.S are under 17 yrs. old = 30 million users
X (Twitter) has 368 million active users.
Reddit has 430 million active users.
Snapchat has 750 million active users.

This generation of young people will have the greatest challenge to parent of all time. Everyday, our kids go online where they are connected to hundreds of people they have never met. How can they tell if they are talking to a good guy or a bad guy (or girl)? What is the likelihood that child will meet up with an online predator and even more important, what are the chances they will recognize they are talking to a potential criminal and know how to protect themselves?




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Recently, the DEA, along with Law Enforcement Agencies in Riverside City and County, announced a major fentanyl bust worth more than $16 million. 
"Operation Hotline Bling" dealt a major blow to the Sinaloa Cartels culminating in at least 15 arrests and a monumental seizure of illicit drugs.  

According to the DEA, for the first time in history, fatal overdoses reached 112,000 deaths. Young people and people of color being among the hardest hit. According to an article published by Michael McManus for FAIR, fentanyl is rapidly replacing heroin as the drug cartels are using to make money. Fentanyl is attractive to the cartels because of the massive profit margin, with just $50,000 in production costs, generating more than $ 20 million in
income.

This week's episode looks at the impact of fentanyl, meth and other illicit drugs on our communities, our kids and the homeless population. 





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The past two years has brought a plethora of technological advances that is enough to make our heads spin.  Only when you step back and examine all the types
of technology advancements can you begin to understand the impact on our day to day lives and how to prepare our young people to live in a global online community.  

 

The FBI and Child Crime Prevention and Safety Center state that there are over 500,000 pedophiles online at any given time.  They also state that more than 50% of victims are ages 12-15 years old. Approximately 90%  of
contacts with victims of online sexual exploitation where contacted through chat rooms and instant messaging apps.

 

This episode, Opal Singleton, the host of "Exploited: Crimes and Technologies" explores the vast array of technology advancements that impact our day to day lives. These include, artificial intelligence, geo location software, digital currency, mass audience live streaming and the explosion of the number of new young users of inexpensive tablets.  


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Did you know that every week Million Kids publishes all the latest information, stories, trends, technologies, legislation, arrests and prosecutions etc related to sex and labor trafficking and social media exploitation.  It is one of the most comprehensive information resources available for anyone interested in combating these crimes.  To sign up to receive this resource, simply go to www.Millionkids.org and subscribe.

Opal Singleton, Host of Exploited: Crimes and Technologies is going to talk about several intriguing
scenarios that are in the news. 

The BBC just released information gathered by the IWF
(Internet Watch Foundation) that discovered more than 2000 remotely filmed child abuse images of three to six year old children online.  Many of these images were self-generated where a child is persuaded, coerced, or tricked by a predator into carrying out acts via webcam or handheld device.

The research further reveals that a third of parents whose
five to seven-year-olds browse social media are allowed to do so alone. The watchdog group “Ofcom” revealed that almost one quarter of children aged five to seven have a smartphone of their own. 


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Opal Singleton is the author of a book with the same title that shares about how predators use online relationships to create a false narrative about engaging in a caring and supportive relationships, then using that fantasy to groom and exploit their victims.  The basics of online seduction are still the same but technology transformations have greatly accelerated the access to victims, facilitated payment processes for blackmailers, and artificial intelligence now allows the ability to alter images erotically and begin a blackmail process for completely uninvolved and innocent victims.  

 

Global technology connections means that cartels around the globe can access, groom, recruit and exploit our kids.  There is an urgent need for parents and grandparents to help teens (and anyone with an online device) to understand how sending ANY kind of image/video or erotic live streaming can change their lives forever.  What looks like a cute young guy/girl can easily be an organized
criminal unit consisting of a chatter and a group of thugs looking to destroy their lives forever.  We must educate everyone, that ANYONE WHO IS ASKING FOR A NUDE IS NOT YOUR FRIEND.  


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Fear is an interesting emotion.  Fear can be a great
motivator or it can paralyze you, or even seduce you into making questionable and knee jerk decisions. With informed and well thought out solutions, fear can
keep you safe. Fear can be generated from your own “self talk” like “I am not good enough or I will probably screw this up again”.

With 24 hour news and social media we are bombarded by the minute with fear based headlines. 

Media of all
types have perfected a fear based dictionary using familiar phrases like:

A Tragic End

No one is Safe

Deadly car crash.

Celeb speaks out on divorce.

Threatens to ouster

Shuts down production

Inflation is soaring

Cost of living is skyrocketing

Cancer scare

 

During this weeks show, Opal Singleton examineS the power of fear. We talk about the need to teach our
kids the positive and negatives of fear and how to use it wisely in decision processes.  This is especially important
for a generation of young people online that will seduced, manipulated and even threatened online.  Making the right decision online, especially in a time of crisis or threats can be the difference in staying safe online or being compromised. 

































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