Web can weave world of trouble in wrong hands

Authorities say a juvenile taken into custody for making bombs found directions on the Internet.

By Jonathon Dawe ~ Dexter Daily Statesman

DEXTER, Mo. -- Where do your children go when they log on to the Internet? Do you know? According to Dexter Police Department detective Trevor Pulley, they could be going to any number of harmful places.

Pulley said a Dexter juvenile who was recently taken into custody for making bombs in his home had attained the knowledge to make the explosive devices using information downloaded from the Internet.

"Parents should put their computer in a common area in the home," Pulley said. "They should be aware of where it is their children are going when they log on to the Internet."

According to Pulley, the recent arrest is proof that dangerous things can happen in a small town as easily as a large community.

"Columbine was a small area," Pulley noted. "A lot of people don't stop to think that things can happen here as easily as anywhere else. Those problems are the same anywhere you go."

Pulley recommended taking advantage of parental controls for a computer to prevent children from going to a Web site deemed unsuitable.

"You can also get software to track where your kids are going or what sites they've been visiting online," Pulley explained. "It's just too easy to get such information on the Internet. I was able to download material [like that used by the juvenile who was taken into custody] in just two minutes."