Child Abduction Prevention

Office of Prevention uses a number of tools to help in the education and prevention of child abduction.  We know that abduction can occur in face to face encounters with both family and strangers, but in today’s world, we and our children are at ever increasing risk with those perceived to be “friends” in the cyber-world.  Therefore, we encourage schools and community members to review and use any number of the following tools:

The AmberWatch Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charity (Tax ID No. 34-2020410) dedicated to the prevention of child abduction and molestation. The AmberWatch mission is to provide innovative educational programs and tools to help children stay safe from sexual predators and abduction. When it comes to issues of personal safety, AmberWatch believe that if the children and parents can see it, hear it and talk about it, they will learn it! For this reason, the AmberWatch Foundation “Be Safe!” Education Program was created to dynamically and proactively educate children and parents on the dangers that exist, and how they can protect themselves from child abductors and molesters. They are also on a constant lookout for the latest consumer-ready technologies in an effort to leverage the latest advancements in our quest to protect the nation’s children. The AmberWatch Foundation “Be Safe!” Education Program is a four-pronged approach to arming children against abductors and molesters.

The CHILD LURES® COMMUNITY PLAN is a multi-media campaign guaranteed to raise awareness and – more importantly – prevent crimes against children by arming all segments of the community with personal safety strategies that work. The program utilizes not only a strong media campaign, but incorporates parents to reinforce the messages taught in school. The School Program is research based and teaches students life skills to keep them safe from sexual abuse, date rape, abduction, Internet crime, drugs and school violence. Lesson plans are provided for both elementary and middle/high school students, and many of the safety strategies learned can be used through adulthood.

Another excellent and free resource for eduction regarding Internet predators is iSafe.  i-SAFE America Inc. is the worldwide leader in the Internet safety education. Founded in 1998 and endorsed by the U.S. Congress, i-SAFE is a non-profit foundation dedicated to protecting the online experiences of youth everywhere. i-SAFE incorporates classroom curriculum with dynamic community outreach to empower students, teachers, parents, law enforcement, and concerned adults to make the Internet a safer place.  i-SAFE’s education component provides students with dynamic, interactive, up-to-date Internet safety curriculum lessons online, in the classroom, and in the community. These lessons employ peer-to-peer communication and cooperative learning activities to help students retain this valuable information. i-SAFE provides a free Professional Development Program (online or face-to-face) and all the materials necessary to train and certify you. Training, materials, and implementation guidelines will be available soon.  If you have immediate questions, feel free to call or email the Office of Prevention Programs.

Finally, our the priority of Internet predator awarenss and safety would not be complete without mentioning the Attorney General’s Cybersafety Program Safe Surf.  This excellent program is free and has numerous tools and resources for students, parents, and schools.

Resources:

CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE: STATISTICS

  • U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics
    Sexual Assault of Young Children as Reported to Law Enforcement: Victim, Incident, and Offender Characteristics
    Phone: (202) 307-0765
  • Prevent Child Abuse America
    Research by The National Center on Child Abuse Prevention regarding child abuse at large, including sexual abuse of children.
    Phone: (800) 244-5373
  • Darkness to Light
    Statistics regarding child sexual abuse, with extensive references.

LOCATE PREDATORS IN YOUR AREA

AMBER ALERTS

  • U.S. Office of Justice Programs
    Get information about Amber Alerts and find out about current Amber Alerts nationwide.
    Phone: (202) 307-0703
  • AmberAlert.com
    A convenient portal to Amber Alert information on a state-by-state basis.

MISSING CHILDREN

GET HELP & REPORT ABUSE