What happened: Midland Freshman High School PTA recently hosted a community seminar led by local FBI and Homeland Security Investigations agents focused on online child exploitation. The session shared real cases and practical guidance for parents in the Permian Basin.

Agents said these cases are happening locally every week. Many involve middle school students, and most incidents go unreported to parents or law enforcement.

“We can’t tell you exactly what to do,” the agents said. “But we can give you knowledge from what we see every day and ways to work through it.”

The big picture: Online child exploitation affects every demographic and continues to grow as technology evolves. In the Permian Basin, agents handle about 20 reports a week, with several involving child assault or sextortion, a form of blackmail using explicit images.
Agents said sextortion is one of the most common threats. In some cases, predators pose as peers to build trust before demanding images or money.

The agents said that about 95% of teenagers have cellphones, 96% have internet access, and 46% of teens are online constantly. Yet only a fraction of parents use monitoring software. Agents said parental controls are often easy to bypass, and parents should not rely on them alone.

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Go deeper: Agents said technology is evolving faster than most parents can keep up with. Apps that claim content “disappears” can still be saved without the sender knowing. In some cases, perpetrators have stored images for months or years before using them. AI is also creating new risks, with perpetrators having the ability to generate explicit images from normal photos.

Agents also warned about organized online groups that pressure victims into escalating behavior, including coercion, threats, and recruiting others. These networks often operate through familiar platforms like Snapchat and Roblox and may involve other minors.

Reality check: Agents asked parents to consider the risk versus reward of providing minors with personal devices and emphasized that many situations begin with information or images already shared online, sometimes even by family members. They provided other practical steps to prevent online abuse:

  • Set devices and apps to private and turn off location services when possible
  • Limit where and when your children have access to devices
  • Talk regularly about online behavior, data permanency, and risks, even if they don’t have a personal device
  • Warn your children not to accept friend requests or converse privately with strangers
  • Warn against sharing any personal information online

What they’re saying: The agents shared signs to look for that could be a sign of a problem you need to address with your child, including mood changes, evasiveness, withdrawal, or receiving unexplained gifts.

“At the end of the day, you have to have a relationship with your kid that they will tell you when this happens,” the agents said.

What’s next: If you suspect an issue, start with a calm conversation and reinforce trust, not punishment.

“Your child is a victim. If you treat them any other way, you will lose trust with them,” the agents said. “If you come at your child in a difficult or aggressive way, they will be tempted to hide more from you.”

If an incident has occurred, the agents urge families to save all evidence, not delete messages, images, or videos, report the incident and block the account, and contact the authorities. The agents said many families assume they can handle issues privately, but that cases can recur if not addressed properly.

The bottom line: Parents can find additional tools and guidance through organizations like TakeItDown, Family Online Safety Institute, Common Sense Media, Carly Ryan Foundation, FBI Safe Surfing, National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and DHS’ Know2Protect.