Teens risky online: Study

A just-released survey of 1,468 US tweens and teens turned up a lot of risk-taking in their online activities, USATODAY reports. The study, by the Polly Klaas Foundation, found that 42% of 13-to-18-year-olds who use the Net post personal informaation so people can contact them, 30% have talked about meeting someone they encountered online, and 27% have talked about sex online with someone they've never met in person. The Klaas Foundation, a member of the Association of Missing and Exploited Children's Organizations, says it conducted the survey because "the recent explosion in online networking [as at MySpace.com] puts young people at increased risk of sexual encounters and abductions by predators." In other findings from the survey…

* More girls than boys 13-18 are posting a profile (56% vs. 37%), sharing personal information (37% vs. 26%), and being asked about sexual topics (33% vs. 18%).
* 54% have communicated with a stranger via IM, half via email, and 45% via chatroom.
* 56% have been asked personal questions online; 25% weekly; 10% daily.
* Online teens frequently communicate virtually with someone they have never met: 54 percent have done so using Instant Messaging; half via e-mail; and 45% in a chat room.
*12% have learned that someone they were communicating with online was an adult pretending to be younger.

The Klaas Foundation's press release cites Justice Department data showing an 84% increase this year over 2004 in complaints nationwide about predators enticing minors online or traveled to meet them. Here's the San Francisco Examiner's coverage.