GREEN COVE SPRINGS - Members of the Village Improvement Association invited local families to come out and learn how to be safe when dealing with the World Wide Web.

The Parent Night event, hosted at the group's clubhouse on November 6, was a follow-up to the organization's Day of Service event on September 26, where a crowd of more than 40 people gathered at the Clay County Courthouse to hear from local officials and learn more about human trafficking.

Clay County Sheriff's Office Detective Ryan Ellis was the guest speaker for the evening, discussing what he said has become "a vessel for child exploitation."

"The greatest risk facing children right now, today is the internet. There are more kids exploited and victimized on the Internet than childhood obesity, than guns, than drugs ever come close to," Ellis said.

According to a Common Sense Media Census, nearly one in four children has their own cellphone by age 8.

From human trafficking and sextortion to cyberbullying, Ellis discussed various parameters that parents should be aware of when it comes to their children being online. 

"Someone looking to victimize a child is not going to NRA.com or they're not going to Home Depot forums online and learning how to build furniture. They're going to places that children go," he said.

Ellis said that when he first began examining these cases, high school-aged children were the primary victims. However, in recent years, he said it's now common to get cases involving 5- and 6-year-olds. 

"It happens. And I understand why kids get phones and I understand the purpose behind it, but what I would take away is that while there are all those good things, there are also those dangers," he said. 

Ellis shared some reminders for parents and guardians:

• Start conversations about online safety when your children are young. "If you decide to give your child, fill in the age, a smart device, you then should start having these conversations," he said.
• Always monitor your child's device. 
• Block and report inappropriate content on apps or websites.
• Don't be your own detective. If you think your child is a victim of exploitation, do not confront the predator. Ellis advised that you should immediately report it to the website or app, submit a report to report.cybertip.org, and contact law enforcement.
• Pay attention to the signs. Spending more time online than usual, receiving expensive gifts, a lack of motivation, depression, having multiple devices, physical abuse and being secretive are some of the many signs associated with exploitation and grooming.

"While there are safeguards set up, and I hear parents say oftentimes, 'Well, they were on something that I thought was safe' or that 'I thought there were safeguards, so I just didn't really bother to look.' That should be thrown out the window."

For more information, go to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's website at missingkids.org.