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Even more recently, Fox News reported, "Five teenage boys accused of plotting a shooting rampage at their high school [in Riverton, Kansas] on the anniversary of the Columbine massacre were arrested ... after a message authorities said warned of a gun attack appeared on the website MySpace.com."

No Magic Bullet

The reports are endless, but the problems don't have to be. According to Hagelin and Kush, the answer lies in the hands of parents, although they are partially to blame for the initial problems.

"When you marry sloppy parenting, a technological revolution and pornography -- as pervasive as it is today -- that's a recipe for disaster for our children [and for] their physical safety and their moral and spiritual health," Hagelin explained. "It's the perfect storm, in other words, and our kids are the ones that are the victims caught up in it. [So], it's time for hands-on parenting."

Kush agrees, "[While] there's nothing you can do apart from unplugging the computer that will make them 100% safe ... parents have to become actively involved in their kids' online activities. There's just no way around it."

But at the same time, "there's no magic bullet," Kush explained. Therefore, it is going to take an extra effort on behalf of the parents to become familiar with the technological advances of the day.

"If they don't know the technology ... that doesn't excuse them from being parents," he said. "They are still the authority figure in the family," and they are going to have to monitor their children's online activity on a consistent basis.

Kush encourages parents to talk to their children about any accounts they may have on social networking sites, and treat the conversation as a learning experience. Let the child teach the parent about social networking sites, and if the parent finds anything questionable in the process, instruct the child to remove it using his password.

Not only does this give parents an insider's perspective on what their child is doing online, it also gives the child the opportunity to contribute his technical knowledge to the family.

"[So] unless parents can stand in the gap and protect their kids ..., then the world will be passing its values on to our children by default, rather than parents doing it actively," Hagelin concluded.

After all, a parent's inability to act could be a predator's ability to attack.

Strategies for Parents

One promising organization to help parents and kids be more savvy is www.webwisekids.org. Though not a Christian-based site, Web Wise Kids offers a number of resources. The site offers games that help kids-to-teens develop their critical skills. For example, Missing is the title of a game for 11- to 14-year-olds. Based on a true story, Missing is an interactive computer game that puts players in the role of detective. Players work to discover and interpret clues which can lead them to find the Internet predator who kidnapped a young boy named Zack. While solving the crime, players identify dangers of the Internet and learn safety concepts they can use in their time online.

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