pornography10

The Teen Model Web Sites
Webmasters are now involved in recruiting large numbers of young people as
"teen models.” The Webmaster creates a membership Web site where he or she
charges a set fee to those wishing to join. The fee is usually between $9.95-$19.95
per month.
After the potential member pays his or her membership dues, he or she is then
given access to the photos of the young teen or pre-teen models. The
membership fee allows the member to view the images of children sitting in their
underwear, posing in provocative positions and if they are wearing any clothes,
they are very revealing clothes that most parents would not approve of their
child wearing.
These Web sites display girls as young as seven years old posing provocatively
in their underwear or swimwear. Some even go a step further and show the girls
nude with their hands covering their private parts.
They enlist the help of the parents of these young people and obtain their
permission to photograph or videotape children for their Web sites. Parents and
young people are paid from $150 to $500 for allowing the photographer to take
pictures or record videos of the children.
Most law enforcement agencies across the United States and other parts of the
world consider the content of these sites to be art. The images seen on the
public or non-member areas of these sites do not meet the federal guidelines for
child pornography.
According to the owners of the Web sites, these are just young innocent girls,
who would like to become professional models one day. With their images and
portfolios online, talent scouts are more likely to discover them and the girls
could actually become professional models one day and in the meantime, they
can make some money too.
The site owners also claim that there is no connection between these innocent
teen models and the adult pornography industry. They say that if anyone other
than professional model seekers and talent scouts are looking at these girls with
other thoughts in mind, it is their problem.
Each year tens of thousands of young people become victims of sexual
exploitation and prostitution with the use of digital cameras and Web cameras.
In one case, a 42-year-old man who called himself a high fashion photographer
was arrested, charged with sexual exploitation of a child, and held on a one
million dollar bond after it was discovered that he was operating a child
exploitation Web site. It was estimated that the site was generating a monthly
income of at least $60,000.
The man recruited young "models" aged 13-17 on his Web site. He would then
contact the unsuspecting parents and give them a sales pitch about how their
daughters would be paid up to $150 for each modeling session and may be taken
to other locations out of state to perform “photo sessions.” The parents signed a
consent form which the man used to manipulate the girls into believing what they
were doing was perfectly legal because they had their parent's permission to
perform the activities.
In a pedophile newsgroup, one person wrote about a teen-modeling site, "I kind
of wonder if this girl would be looking for sex with a man. She certainly is a very
pretty girl. She looks about 9 or 10."
In their advertising, they specifically target young people and their parents.

Use extreme caution when allowing a child to upload or send a picture to anyone
online. Never allow nude, sexually explicit, or provocative photos to be placed on
a Web site. These photos may not be illegal and may be considered art but a
pedophile can double as a stalker very quickly when he finds stimulating material
to add to his or her collection of images of children.
Before you allow anyone to photograph or videotape your child, be certain that
you know how the images will be used. If the individual promises to place the
images on a Web site, ask to see the subscription area of the site. Check to see if
the photographer is associated with a legitimate modeling agency by contacting
the nearest Better Business Bureau, the state licensing board, or regulation
agency in the state where the modeling agency is located. Check with your
Department of Public Safety or Bureau of Investigation to inquire about
procedures for checking on a criminal history associated with the photographer.
If your child is asked to pose nude or in sexually seductive positions, the agency
is not reputable even if they claim to have models featured in magazines and
promise the child a profitable career in modeling.
A parent, guardian, or trusted adult should be present during all photo or video
sessions. Never allow a photographer to provide transportation to or from a
photo or video shooting session when the child is alone with the photographer.
Always remember that if the offer sounds too good to be true, there is probably a
catch or some consequences attached to the offer. Many child molesters pay
children or their parents enormous amounts of money to insure secrecy while
they exploit them.
The Internet is not the only place where children are approached and convinced
to pose in sexually explicit positions. There are a variety of ploys used in the local
community to lure young people into becoming victims of sexual exploitation.