In an effort to fight the sexual exploitation of children, federal authorities will teach Los Angeles Unified School District students, staff and parents how to stay safe online.
A memorandum of understanding between the nation’s second-largest school district, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations was announced Friday.
HSI Los Angeles special agents, primarily from the Child Exploitation Investigations Group, will offer the so-called iGuardian trainings, which aim to educate participants about the dangers of online sexual predators and instruct them how to avoid and report abuse. The in-person training program will focus mainly on preteens and teenagers but can be tailored to younger children, as well as staff and parents, officials said in a news release.
The program is part of a national campaign by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to raise awareness about online child sexual exploitation, which the agency calls a “rapidly escalating threat.” That effort also stems from a long-running U.S. Department of Justice initiative that seeks to combat technology-facilitated sex crimes against children.