Utah, video gaming industry launch Web safety initiative

In a state where officials estimate 75 percent of homes are connected to the Internet, online threats to Utah's children seem to be everywhere.

On Wednesday, Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff and Michael D. Gallagher, president and CEO of the Entertainment Software Association, announced the availability of a free program — Wired With Wisdom — aimed at addressing those threats through improved parental education.

"Utah is wired — we just want it 'Wired With Wisdom,' " Shurtleff said, flanked by Senate President Michael Waddoups, R-West Jordan, and House Speaker David Clark, R-Santa Clara.

The online tutorial, created by the nonprofit organization Web Wise Kids, is designed to teach adults how to keep children safe from actual and virtual harm on the Internet. Issues addressed include: e-mail safety, the creation of personal Web sites, the use of social media sites like MySpace and Facebook, and cyberbullying.

The Web-based program is designed so that "even the least Internet-savvy parent can understand these topics that our e-generation is now so eagerly embracing," Gallagher said.

Web Wise Kids president Judi Westberg-Warren said many kids report that their parents know very little about their online activities. She said a significant percentage of those same kids report that they would modify their Internet activities if their parents were more aware of their Internet behavior.

"We know parents are so busy these days, but this is a very important part of parenting nowadays," Westberg-Warren said.

Utah joins five other states — Arizona, California, Florida, Virginia and Washington — in adopting Wired With Wisdom. Shurtleff said he views the program as a vital component of the state's ongoing fight against child pornographers and Internet predators who target children.

"Since I've been in office, we've put more than 550 of these Internet predators and child pornographers in prison and we saved a lot of kids that way," the attorney general said. "However, we know that we just still hit the tip of the iceberg.

"The best way to protect our kids is to provide them with the tools to protect themselves," Shurtleff added. "Education is absolutely critical."

Individuals can access the Wired With Wisdom program by visiting www.webwisekids.org/WWW-UT. The password is "wise." Users must register before using the free software.

e-mail: gliesik@desnews.com Twitter: GeoffLiesik