Internet Stats Click to View Statistics on Juveniles as Victims & Offenders Click to View Law Enforcement Information Internet Crimes June 21, 2000 - Startling Findings - A new study conducted by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, has some startling implications. The survey, "Online Victimization: A Report on the Nation's Youth", a survey of 1,501 youths who were regular Internet users, was commissioned by Congress. Among the findings: 19% reported getting an unwanted sexual solicitation in the past year 1, which the study estimates, equals 4-5 million children. 65% of the sexual solicitations occurred while in a chat room; 24% came by instant message. Of those youth sexually solicited, 20% were "very or extremely upset," which the study estimates equals .9-1.4 million children. 25% reported receiving "unwanted exposure to pictorial images of naked people or people having sex," which the study estimates equals 5.4-6.4 million children. 71% of "unwanted exposures" occurred while the youth was searching or surfing the Internet, and 28% happened when opening e-mail or clicking on links in e-mail. 67% of the unwanted exposures happened at home, but 15% happened in schools, and 3% happened in libraries. Based on the estimates supplied by the authors, this would translate into between 814,000 and 970,000 children exposed in schools, and between 162,9000 and 194,100 exposed in public libraries. [Ed. Note: These numbers are drastically different from the findings of the 1997 On-Line Summit in Washington, D.C. which found that 70% of children's exposure to on-line porn had occurred in schools and libraries.] For the youths who encountered the material while surfing, it came up as a result of searches 47% of the time, misspelled addresses 17%, and links in websites 17%.