Bloomfield Hills — In 2013, special agents with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations opened more than 4,000 investigations involving child sexual exploitation.

In light of this growing crime, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) recently partnered with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) to increase awareness of online child sexual predation through a new campaign, using a local Catholic school as the launchpad for the program in Michigan.

The newly launched Project iGuardian, a national cyber safety initiative, features superhero-style characters to encourage kids in smart cyber safety.

St. Regis Catholic School in Bloomfield Hills served as Project iGuardian’s official Michigan springboard March 26, guided by Michael J. Ball, a senior special agent with HSI.

Speaking to students at the kindergarten-through-eighth-grade school, along with faculty members and parents, Ball explained that cybercrime, by its very nature, is an international problem, and is closely related to cases of child exploitation.

Project iGuardian teaches kids to avoid online dangers with resources such as trading cards illustrating different aspects of Internet safety.

“The iGuardians program … is to put a face on some of the different things that you might encounter, some of the problems that kind of focus on you as kids,” said Ball, explaining that the trading cards have “good guy” characters — helping keep kids safe — and “bad guy” characters, who represent different Internet dangers.

“This program is focused on keeping you safe, but it’s a two-way street,” he told the students. “It’s an educational program for you … and it’s information we’re giving you, your parents, your teachers at school.”

Ball also gave an NCMEC NetSmartz Workshop following the iGuardian presentation, which featured short videos about cyber safety, tips to prevent cyberbullying and cyber gossip, and an opportunity for students to field their own questions about the topic.

Following the presentation, many of the St. Regis students said they felt more informed about Internet safety, and about decreasing cyberbullying among kids.

Natalie Esshaki, a seventh-grader, said she realized there are ways to “prevent people from hurting yourself or others.”

Fellow seventh-grader Grace Kanehann said she enjoyed how the presentation was given, so she could relate to it as a kid.

“Think before you post,” she said, explaining that the presentation showed how to be careful about the personal information you share online.

Eighth-grader Brendan Ammori said he would share what he learned in the presentation with his friends who attend other schools — “I feel more equipped,” he said.

And sixth-grader Kaitlyn Kizy said she thinks the information given in the presentation will help promote better Internet safety for kids.

“A lot of the things that happen are crazy,” she said. “Be careful what you say and do — and try to help someone who’s being bullied.”

 

Internet safety for kids

• For more information about hosting a Project iGuardian presentation, visit www.ice.gov/cyber-crimes/iguardian.htm or email [email protected].

• To report a crime, call (866) 347-2423 or visit the HSI tip line at www.ice.gov/exec/forms/hsi-tips/tips.asp. Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at 1-800-843-5678.

• Internet safety information for parents can be found at www.netsmartz.org/parents.