Well here's a novel idea, instead of banning parents from taking pictures of their kids at holiday concerts and telling high school students they may not keep MySpace profiles without facing expulsion: why don't we educate our children about the risks they're taking.

A school in Wyoming has started a class to educate teachers about the variety of risks and pitfalls involved on the web. From cyber-bullying to identity theft, the pitfalls of unregulated access to the internet teens have are numerous.

Some good rules for kids and the internet (teens included):

• Keep the computer in a common are of the house where it can be monitored: no computers in bedrooms. (Or a clever child may start his own porn business in his bedroom. Oops!)
• Understand what your child is doing on the internet. (Oooh...a teenager will love this! I'm 32 and it still annoys me to explain to my mother what a 'Blahg' is.)
• Know who they're talking too with instant messaging and make sure they understand just because someone says they're 13, doesn't mean they are 13.
• And most of all, never, ever show your face on the internet!!!! You may be surprised to hear I actually have some concerns about this issue as my daughter gets older. Now I don't have concerns for her safety since she's with me all the time. As she becomes more independent, riding her bike to school, going to the mall, I think the risk of her photo on the internet becomes a little more tangiable than the risk of a pervert viewing a photo of my child and fantasizing. I'll have to reevaluate though when there is a physical risk involved.

You can find a lot of great information at staysafe.org