Child Safety Tips For Toys This Holiday Season

 

’Tis the season to be jolly—and to spend a lot of money bringing cheer to your loved ones. Holiday retail sales in 2021 are expected to be somewhere between $843.4 billion and $859 billion—an increase between 8.5% and 10.5% over sales over 2020, according to the National Retail Federation (NRF). The average consumer, the NRF found, will spend about $998 in the holiday season between gifts, food, decorations, and other holiday-related purchases. 

Being inundated with all the bells and whistles of ads and wish lists can make it hard to suss out which toys are most appropriate for children's gifts. And while adults may disagree on budget, wastefulness, or exactly how many L.O.L. dolls one child truly needs, we can all agree that safety is the baseline.

To that end, Stacker used a variety of holiday and safety resources to compile a list of 15 tips for holiday toy safety. Our list is not about toy recalls, per se; although we tell you where to check for toys that should not be on your list. We curated the top tips for not only toys, but ancillary items you may not consider dangerous such as batteries, decorations, and wrapping.

In a 2020 report issued by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, it was noted that nearly 150,000 children were treated for toy-related injuries in hospital emergency departments in the United States. We hope that you take a few minutes to click through our slideshow and read the tips to keep your child safe this holiday season. Whether you are purchasing a toy or device, reviewing instructions on how to assemble or use a toy, or selecting decorations, please be safe

Purchase age-appropriate toys

Take a moment to read the age level of the toy you are buying. The American Academy of Pediatrics notes the importance when buying toys to not only look at the age level but also be aware that the toys match the ability, skill, and interest level of your child. Advanced toys may frustrate your child and/or pose safety hazards when in the hands of younger children.

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Ensure children ride safely

Whether you buy your child a bike, toy car, or scooter, be sure they are riding in a safe place and wearing proper equipment. Helmets are essential when children are riding bikes, scooters, Segways, and other objects where their heads need protecting.

Check for toy recalls

The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission has a recall list of products that have been taken off the shelves. The site also includes statistics, blogs and, alerts.

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OverviewWhat Happens to a Tip?Is Your Image Out There?By the NumbersMore

Overview

NCMEC’s CyberTipline is the nation’s centralized reporting system for the online exploitation of children. The public and electronic service providers can make reports of suspected online enticement of children for sexual acts, child sexual molestation, child sexual abuse material, child sex tourism, child sex trafficking, unsolicited obscene materials sent to a child, misleading domain names, and misleading words or digital images on the internet.

What Happens to Information in a CyberTip?

NCMEC staff review each tip and work to find a potential location for the incident reported so that it may be made available to the appropriate law-enforcement agency for possible investigation. We also use the information from our CyberTipline reports to help shape our prevention and safety messages.

Is Your Image Out There?

Get Support

One of the worst things about having an explicit image online is feeling like you’re facing everything alone. But you have people who care for you and want to help. Reach out to them!

A trusted adult can offer advice, help you report, and help you deal with other issues. It could be your mom, dad, an aunt, a school counselor, or anyone you trust and are comfortable talking to. You can also “self report” by making a report on your own to the CyberTipline.

Families of exploited children often feel alone in their struggle and overwhelmed by the issues affecting their lives. NCMEC provides assistance and support to victims and families such as crisis intervention and local counseling referrals to appropriate professionals. Additionally, NCMEC’s Team HOPE is a volunteer program that connects families to others who have experienced the crisis of a sexually exploited child.

Don't Give Up

Having a sexual exploitative image of yourself exposed online is a scary experience. It can make you feel vulnerable and isolated, but remember, others have been in the same situation as you – and they’ve overcome it. Learn the steps you can take to limit the spread of the content.

By the Numbers

In 2020, reports to the CyberTipline increased by 28% from 2019.

The 21.7 million reports of child sexual exploitation made to the CyberTipline in 2020 included 65.4 million images, videos and other files. These materials contained suspected child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and other incident related content.

Electronic Service Providers make the majority of reports, but reports of online sexual exploitation from the public more than doubled in 2020.

2019 & 2020 Total Files by Reporting Category & Type

2019 Reports by Electronic Service Providers (ESP)

2020 Reports by Electronic Service Providers (ESP)

2019 & 2020 Reports by Country

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Learn more about online exploitation and safety.

Coping with Child Sexual Abuse (CSAM) Exposure For Families

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Production and Active Trading of Child Sexual Exploitation Images Depicting Identified Victims

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Trends Identified in CyberTipline Sextortion Reports

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The Online Enticement of Children: An In-Depth Analysis of CyberTipline Reports

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How NCMEC is responding to the ever-changing threats to children online.

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Simple Steps for an Extra Safe Halloween

 

Kids love the magic of Halloween, but many communities canceled their celebrations in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. So, is it safe to trick-or-treat this year? 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky, in a Sept. 26 interview,  said yes, but families still should use caution. The CDC also updated its holiday safety tips, applicable to all of the upcoming holidays.

Of course, Halloween costume and traffic safety measures still apply for trick-or-treaters.

Costume Safety

To help ensure adults and children have a safe holiday, fda.gov has compiled a list of Halloween safety tips. Before Halloween arrives, be sure to choose a costume that won't cause safety hazards.

• All costumes, wigs and accessories should be fire-resistant
• If children are allowed out after dark, fasten reflective tape to their costumes and bags, or give them glow sticks
• Opt for nontoxic Halloween makeup over masks, which can obscure vision; always test makeup in a small area first to see if any irritation develops
• Remove all makeup before children go to bed to prevent skin and eye irritation

When They're on the Prowl

Here's a scary statistic: Children are more than twice as likely to be hit by a car and killed on Halloween than on any other day of the year. Lack of visibility because of low lighting at night also plays a factor in these incidents.

Keep these tips in mind when your children are out on Halloween night:

• A responsible adult should accompany young children on the neighborhood rounds
• If your older children are going alone, plan and review a route acceptable to you
• Agree on a specific time children should return home
• Teach your children never to enter a stranger's home or car
• Instruct children to travel only in familiar, well-lit areas and stick with their friends
• Tell your children not to eat any treats until they return home, and take care to avoid any food allergies
• Children and adults are reminded to put electronic devices down, keep heads up and walk, don't run, across the street

Safety Tips for Motorists

NSC offers these additional safety tips for parents – and anyone who plans to be on the road during trick-or-treat hours:

• Watch for children walking on roadways, medians and curbs
• Enter and exit driveways and alleys carefully
• At twilight and later in the evening, watch for children in dark clothing
• Discourage new, inexperienced drivers from driving on Halloween

Trinity Mount Ministries - FBI warns predators are targeting children playing video games

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The FBI warns predators are trying to take advantage of children playing video games.(WOIO)

By Sara Goldenberg

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - The FBI is warning predators are targeting children.

Kids and teens spend hours over the summer playing video games, and they still have a few weeks left until back-to-school.

Video games can be a lot of fun, but 19 Investigates found sexual predators can be lurking anonymously behind the keyboard.

FBI New York released a PSA called “It’s Not a Game” urging parents to watch out for their children online.

“As soon as that instant message pops up on your child’s browser or on their smart phone, there could be a sexual predator on the other end. It takes only a few days—sometimes just hours—to groom your child into sending compromising photos to the person on the other end of that chat. Then the threats begin,” the FBI agent said in the video.

You can watch the PSA in full here.

We spoke with a local parent, Mallory Diebel, and her 11-year-old son Slade, who loves to play video games.

“I like that it’s a getaway from real life, where you can basically do whatever you want,” he said. Roblox and Minecraft keep him busy for hours.

His parents try to stay involved in what he’s playing.

“It’s a whole new world from when me and my husband were young and playing Sega and Nintendo,” she said. There has been one big change since then.

Users can message each other now, and that’s where the FBI warns threats can come in.

500,000 predators are active online every day, according to the FBI.

Kids ages 12 to 15 are most at risk.

Diebel wants to give Slade his independence when he’s playing.

But she continues to keep tabs on what he’s playing and who he’s talking to.

“We do check in with him every once and awhile to make sure he’s not giving anything private out about yourself, where we live, your name, if we’re home, not home, different things like that,” she said. She’s noticed many of the video games put in more parental controls and restrictions on chats.

But she still keeps an eye on public servers.

“When you’re talking about strangers and a person you see in front of you, it’s easy to say, they’re kind of giving me a weird feeling. Same thing that happens with online,” she said. So what can you do, besides set parental controls?

Experts say know your child’s ID and password and tell him or her you will randomly check them.

You can keep your child’s computer in an open area of your home.

But the best thing you can do is talk about the dangers together.

That’s something Diebel is already doing with her son.

“It’s just having those little, hard conversations that they may not want to have, but it’s still important to keep that communication open,” she said. We checked with the Cuyahoga County Internet Crimes Against Children task force to see how many cyber tips they’re getting so far this year.

The task force says it has gotten 6,393 cyber tips statewide through July 25.

They’re getting more cyber tips than last year at this time.

10,321 cyber tips came into the task force in 2020, setting a record.

CyberTipline - NCMEC - Trinity Mount Ministries - Report Abuse! 1-800-843-5678

Help Find Missing Children. Let's Put An End To Child Abuse And Exploitation... Care. 

Overview

NCMEC’s CyberTipline is the nation’s centralized reporting system for the online exploitation of children. The public and electronic service providers can make reports of suspected online enticement of children for sexual acts, extra-familial child sexual molestation, child pornography, child sex tourism, child sex trafficking, unsolicited obscene materials sent to a child, misleading domain names, and misleading words or digital images on the internet.

What Happens to Information in a CyberTip?

NCMEC staff review each tip and work to find a potential location for the incident reported so that it may be made available to the appropriate law-enforcement agency for possible investigation. We also use the information from our CyberTipline reports to help shape our prevention and safety messages.

Is Your Image Out There?

Get Support

One of the worst things about sextortion is feeling like you’re facing everything alone. But you have people who care for you and want to help. Reach out to them!

A trusted adult can offer advice, help you report, and help you deal with other issues. It could be your mom, dad, an aunt, a school counselor, or anyone you trust and are comfortable talking to. You can also “self report” by making a report on your own to the CyberTipline.

Don’t Give Up

Having a sexual exploitative image of yourself exposed online is a scary experience. It can make you feel vulnerable and isolated, but remember, others have been in the same situation as you – and they’ve overcome it. 

Learn the steps you can take to limit the spread of the content.