Daytona Beach, FL - With kids having easy access to messaging apps and the web, the Volusia County Sheriff says it's important to make sure your kids stay safe.
On an episode of the Marc Bernier Show, Sheriff Mike Chitwood talked about the need for parents to know what their kids are doing and what apps they're using, especially since some kids have already been affected by malicious use.
According to Chitwood, some apps to watch out for are MeetMe, WhatsApp, Bumble, LiveMe, Snapchat, Holla and Grindr. On almost all of these apps, people can assume fake identities and pretend to be a teenager or a child in order to make contact with younger people like kids.
Chitwood also mentioned that the Sheriff's Office had a recent incident out of Deltona involving the messaging app Kik, in which an uncle shared explicit images of his young nieces.
"The uncle was molesting his nieces, age four and two, and he was taking pictures of what he was doing," said Chitwood.
He said it was difficult for them to find out what was going on, since Kik encrypts messages in Canada and not the United States.
To prevent incidents from happening, Sheriff Chitwood said it's important for parents to know exactly what apps their kids are using so they can help keep their kids safe from strangers and predators.
"These apps are worldwide, they attract sick individuals," said Chitwood.
Another problem with some of these apps is that some of them are able to track your location, while some can actually display what city you're in, making anonymity that much harder.
"I would encourage parents to see what apps are on their phone and as much as you can control them, control them," said Sheriff Chitwood.
Marc Bernier can be heard live on WNDB, Monday through Friday, 3-6 p.m. on FM 93.5 and AM 1150. You can also find archived interviews and shows on his website, MarcBernierShow.com
