Feds will teach LAUSD students how to stay safe online

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.