this morning we are continuing the
conversation about disturbing videos
that we discovered the i-team online
involving local children and an app
parents probably have no idea that their
kids have downloaded so last night on
the news at 5:00 we've revealed
startling video of young girls look at
this dancing and and talking with
strangers who were watching them on an
app called live me see this young girl
is wearing a low-cut tank top talking to
followers who at one point asked her to
take off her jacket live me allows users
to livestream audio and video and anyone
can watch out we've just showed you I'm
one girl who told followers where she
lives another one actually called a
follower who sent her her cell phone
number and as Vick mcdu lucci explained
this is an app that has 20 million users
in addition to him alerting the FBI to
what he found we also showed the app to
a Clay County sheriff's deputy who was a
father of three and former sex crimes
detective with my daughter I would be
highly concerned about this and
overwhelmingly bothered if I knew that
my daughter was on this app with 364
complete strangers watching her sit in
her bedroom I'll be making contact with
our cyber crimes detectives after this
to make sure they're up to speed on this
so Clay County detectives tell us also
that they have investigated two cases
where local girls were solicited for sex
on live me the app does warn users that
sexual or violent content is strictly
prohibited and that all violators will
be banned live the administrators told
us that employees are looking for
inappropriate and illegal contact but we
just showed you what we found so this is
about you know having a conversation
again and again with your kids how do
you talk with them about this these
kinds of online dangers what are the red
flags that you should be looking for
psychologist does does excuse me Justin
de Renzo is joining us now this morning
thank you for being here I appreciate it
you know what's interesting about this
too is is that we look at something like
this through the eyes of what we do is
our profession but also as parents I
have two children you have
yes what makes these kids so vulnerable
it seems to wanting to kind of you know
show themselves dancing maybe in a small
sports bra and get all of these likes
this fascination with as many people
liking it as possible is unreal we
forget that we we are not dealing with
little adults we're dealing with
children that do not have develop brains
yet so those develop those undeveloped
brains and immature brains predispose
them to recklessness poor judgment and
then also that need to get all that
approval from their peer group and you
think about when when you and I grew up
our peer group where our teens now the
peer group is worldwide and when kids
here the dings and they get little
special badges I mean it is designed to
reinforce them and to even keep them to
keep them from sharing more and that
this is really scary to me I did some
research about this site to and and and
read that there there have been 90
million downloads to this thing and it's
such an important topic to 92 percent of
kids right today daily look at social
media and and I I read last night that
39 percent of teenagers have sent
sexually explicit material through
social media so every parent needs to
pay attention to this this is a really
important stuff and do you think because
I think I feel like as a news agency
we're constantly warning parents about
this is it that they just make
assumptions about their kids oh well
they're so young and well they don't
have a phone they only have an iPad that
that they're just not aware that this is
going on yeah I think again it's it's
believing that they're little adults and
it would never be my kid kids you know
parents are in denial about what their
children are doing then I might practice
I I hear about it I hear though I hear
the worst stories all the time it's
really important to build a culture of
communication with your kids you got to
have open lines of communication what I
have said to my children is there is no
problem that I can't help you with I can
fix anything and I said to my teenage
daughter last night because this I mean
the story reminded me that I needed to
re-engage we engage this conversation I
said even if you of course you don't you
are to never send pictures or videos but
if somebody convinces you and they're
trying to extort you to send more you
know you come to tell me
I will fix this problem and that parents
need to instill that trust and their
kids so kids know that their parents can
fix anything yeah I I feel like part of
that is also I think that that that
perhaps children think well if I tell
mom and dad I'll get into trouble you
almost have to have that conversation is
that look as long as you're honest
you're not gonna get in trouble as long
as we can talk about this before you
make a mistake that you can't take back
right and empathizing with your kids
about what peer pressure is because kids
often even with social media kids will
say don't tell your mom what I said and
you hear about it so I mean and that can
be the that that can be the beginning of
the conversation let's talk about some
other steps I mean I think that's
fantastic engaging constantly don't have
one conversation but multiple
conversations with your kids about this
what about these tablets and these cell
phones you know do we as parents need to
limit where kids can have these because
as we saw in in Vic's story many of
these you know the parents were
downstairs and the kids are upstairs in
their bedroom and mom and dad have no
idea what's going on right there
absolutely should be some limit tablets
cell phones they need to come out of the
out of the bedrooms at nighttime and
also when you're not seeing your child
and you really need to download some
some smart apps the child is downloading
I mean I know there's art apps to your
phone so you can monitor an app that we
have that we have to grant approval to
what your children is accessing and also
our kids what apps the child is
downloading I mean I know there is
family it's family a family share an app
that we have that we have to grant
approval to see you can survey you can
search it to find work these there are
so many likes a little ignorant when it
comes to that kind of technology
absolutely are there certain warning
signs with kids that they may be doing
something like this that you can spot
you know there are if a child becomes
excessively secretive or if they become
aggressive when you're trying to stop
them from looking at social media or or
if they're being or if or if they're
there are all of a sudden using
excessively or if they are suddenly
getting gifts or money is coming to them
okay a very good point Justin thank you
for being here for such a short
conversation to have with our viewers
just just a note here teens safe which
is a nonprofit organization that helps
bring awareness to this it's not just
live me that they have worn
about but also snapchat kik tinder down
and you bow so keep all of that please
in mind please go to news for Jax comm
click under the i-team section and look
for Vic's story it is eye-opening
parents you need this me