Kids Keeping Kids Safe Online

(CBS)  Word that the popular social networking Web site MySpace found more than 29,000 registered sex offenders with MySpace profiles —- many more than previously thought —- is not only a wake-up call for some parents, but another motivator for a group of dedicated kids trying to keep other kids safe online.

Sue McKenney, like a lot of moms, doesn't know much about MySpace. Until recently, she didn't even know that her daughter had an account.

"It just worries me that she's out there, that her face is out there, that her pictures are out there and you don't know, I don't know how far it goes," McKenney tells CBS News correspondent Kelly Wallace.

The dangers are real. Just last week, in Columbus, Ohio, a sexual predator was sentenced for raping a six-year-old girl whose mother he met on MySpace. It's this kind of crime that a group of kids are determined to try and prevent.

They call themselves "Teenangels," and include kids who are trained by Internet safety experts in how to warn other kids about online dangers.

"Don't put as much personal information or pictures about yourself because the more you put on, the more information a predator knows," explains 11-year-old Ryan, a member of the group.

Kate, 15, highlighted some of the dangerous things kids do on MySpace, like giving out the name of their school, their address, and who their friends are. "You have to put up information that isn't going to lead people to you, like you can't put up your phone number and stuff like that," she explains.

Public service announcements are also directed at teens. But parents bear the ultimate responsibility, says online safety advocate Parry Aftab, who started the Teenangels program.

"We need to recognize that no matter how much our kids know about technology, we're the parents and until we step into the position of 'I'm in charge, you follow my rules and that includes what you post and don't post online,' our kids are gonna be lost," Aftab says.

Warning signs for parents include kids using suggestive photos or language online, using the computer at odd times, or late at night, and quickly changing the computer screen when you enter the room.

Aftab says only when parents like Sue McKenney learn how these sites work, or find someone to teach them, will their kids be safer.

McKenney is now getting a crash course, from her kids, on how social networking sites work, while the Teenangels continue to look for new volunteers.