Mom calls chat website a 'pedophile's paradise'

CHARLESTON, S. C. (WCSC) -- Are you a parent who takes every precaution when it comes to monitoring your child's time online? But what if your child could still access a website that allows them to chat with strangers who convince them to undress on camera?

It happened to one mother in Charleston, South Carolina. We'll call her "Mary" in order to protect her identity. A strict parent, "Mary" said she was shocked at what she found her daughter doing online behind closed doors.

"I walked upstairs and opened her door and I see her standing in her room exposed and I see the body of a male adult who is masturbating," she recalled.

The website is called Omegle and it allows you to talk anonymously to strangers, by text or video chat.

"It's a pedophile's paradise," said "Mary."

She said her daughter found out about the site from a friend who been to their house a couple of nights before.

"I asked her what had happened when the friend came over and she said that they had exposed their breasts," she said.

Outraged, "Mary" decided to do her own investigation. She got on the website, but didn't show her face on camera. "Mary" says kept transcripts of many of the chats.

It didn't take long, she said before the stranger on the other end begged her to get on camera.  "I want to see ur see ur sexy body plz" is what one man said.

"Eight out of ten clicks that I did immediately came up with a male masturbating," said "Mary." "I have filters on my Internet, parental controls, everything, but the site comes through."

Officer Doug Gallucio heads up an Internet crimes against children task force with the Charleston City Police Department. He had no idea the Omegle website existed until our affiliate station, WCSC-TV, told him about it.

"I don't know what it is, but they have some kind of gift or talent that can get kids to do things that they want," said Gallucio.

Even worse, it will likely be impossible to track the people responsible and put the Omegle out of business.

Gallucio's advice to parents? "They need to have complete control of where their children are going, where their computers are, keeping their computers in a common room," he said.

Gallucio also said "Mary's" 12 year old daughter was probably recorded and that the video could end up on adult porn site.

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