sexting

Study: Youth take fewer risks than 20 years ago

A study released Wednesday by the Girl Scouts shows that young people report they take fewer risks and treat each other better than their counterparts of a generation ago.

The report, called "Good Intentions: The Beliefs and Values of Teens and Tweens Today," is based on a national study conducted by the Girl Scout Research Institute and Harris Interactive. It's based on research conducted with 3,263 students from 3rd to 12th grade from throughout the U.S. The sample included youth in and out of scouting.

With some exceptions, the survey is identical to one carried … Read more

Study: 15 percent of teens have gotten 'sext' messages

Editors' note: The original headline on this story was changed at 4:19 PST to more accurately reflect the story.

Remember when we were all crying about the fact that AT&T delayed the rollout of multimedia messaging on the iPhone? Well, some parents may now be wishing the feature wasn't available at all.

Sending explicit content, such as naked or near-naked photos, via text message--a phenomenon also known as "sexting"--is a familiar phenomenon among some teens, according to survey results released Tuesday by the Pew Research Center.

The survey, conducted from June 26 to September 24 with the participation of 800 teenagers, is part of the research center's Internet and American Life Project, which tracks the effect of the Internet on American life. It found that 4 percent of cell-owning teens ages 12 to 17 say they've sent sexually suggestive nude or nearly nude images of themselves to someone else via text. Fifteen percent say they have received such material.

Older teens, especially those who foot their own cell phone bills, are much more likely to send and receive these images. While 8 percent of 17-year-olds with cell phones have sent a sexually provocative image by text, this number goes up to 17 percent among those who pay their bills themselves. In all, 30 percent of 17-year-olds have received explicit images on their phones.

The survey also shows that while the exchange of nude images mostly takes place among romantic partners or potential partners of the same age, these images are also forwarded to non-partners or people in different age groups. And this is where things can get really ugly. … Read more

Gadgettes Podcast 165: Celebrity Unfriend Episode

If it involves celebrities and technology, chances are we want to unfriend immediately. That's just the type of mood we're in today.

Subscribe with iTunes (audio) Subscribe with iTunes (video) Subscribe with RSS (audio) Subscribe with RSS (video) EPISODE 165

Facebook’s crazy new privacy settings

Celebrity sexting

A special message for Lindsay Lohan: Please put down the Twitter

Twoddler lets your toddler twitter and summon the Fail Whale #cute

Celebrity star maps comes to iPhone

Celebrity Web site of the day: Go Fug Yourself… Read more

The 404 Podcast 484: Where we text message Tiger Woods

Welcome to Justin's penultimate episode of CNET's The 404 Podcast! Tomorrow will be our last show as a team, but there's plenty of special Yuletide episodes, contests, 404 merchandise, and CES shows to look forward to in 2010.

I know we swore this story wouldn't get discussed on our show, but we finally cave in and say a couple quick words about the recent Tiger Woods sex scandal. As the story unfolds, Wilson tells us Tiger is in even hotter water for sending a racy text message to his lady on the side.

We all make mistakes, so we're not hating on the guy, even though these accidents are most common among teenagers.

Next, Jeff gives us an insider's look into the glitz and glamor of a professional video game reviewer with an overview of Sony's upcoming PS3 game lineup. One of the more unique titles is Heavy Rain, described by the director as "a very dark film-noir thriller with mature themes." Jeff describes the format as a graphic version of "Choose Your Own Adventure," where the decisions you make in the game help to route you through the levels and the storyline. Take a look at Jeff's PS3-exclusive gaming rundown for the full story and more previews.

Finally, virtual daps to Nicholas and Props Guy Jim for using their Photoshop skills to make a few special holiday images for the show. Be sure to subscribe to our iTunes or RSS feed to get the updated holiday album cover art! Also, we're saving Props Guy Jim's picture for the holiday blog, which will go live on Christmas Eve--thanks again, Nicholas and Jim!

EPISODE 484 Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

LG: Before sending pic of your junk, put on a beard

In these modern times, when people hear the word "beard," they sometimes think of someone being used, perhaps unknowingly, to cover up the sexual orientation of a friend.

However, once anyone under 20 sees this series of public-service announcements from LG, in which James Lipton from "Inside the Actor's Studio" attempts to be a good companion to troubled teens, they will, hopefully, think "beard" before sending a text featuring a picture of their private parts.

You see, LG did a little research and discovered that nasty or sexually explicit texts weren't being … Read more

Youth using phones to harass and spy on partners

Cell phones and the Internet are great ways for romantic partners to stay in touch, but based on a recent survey of 14- to 24-year-olds, they're also being used to spy and harass significant others.

My report on the Associated Press and MTV study about youth digital abuse focused mostly on sexting and how youth respond to cyberbullying. But there was also some interesting data on how technology is being used for "dating abuse."

The study (PDF) found that 22 percent of youth involved in a romantic relationship say they feel like their significant other uses a … Read more

Study: 'Digital abuse' hits half of youth

A study conducted by the Associated Press and MTV pretty much confirms what many Internet safety experts have been saying for the past several months: Young people are far more likely to experience problems online from their peers or from their own indiscretions than from adult predators.

But that's hardly to say that there's no need for concern. The AP/MTV study (PDF), released Thursday, found that 50 percent of 14- to 24-year-olds have experienced some type of digital abuse.

The study also found that 30 percent had either sent or received nude photos on their cell phones … Read more

Survey: Teens 'sext' and post personal info

An Internet safety study (PDF) just released by Cox Communications shows that teens may be a bit more safety conscious than previously thought.

The survey, which was done by Harris Interactive, asked 655 13- to 18-year-olds about their online and cell phone behavior, specifically addressing issues of cyberbullying and sexting. The study was in partnership with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and "America's Most Wanted Host" John Walsh.

For the purposes of the study, cyberbullying was defined as "harassment, embarrassment, or threats online or by text message," while sexting referred to "… Read more

Teen 'sexting': Stupid and illegal

"Sexting" is the practice of taking a sexually revealing picture of yourself, typically from a cell phone, and sending it to someone. Legal consequences aside, it's a dumb thing to do, especially for younger age groups in which it has become something of a fad.

Even if you are comfortable with the person receiving the image, you never know for sure where else it might land. Digital images are easy to copy and forward, and even if you trust your friend's discretion, it can be accidentally forwarded or seen by others with access to your friend'… Read more