BASEBALL TEAM ADVANCES TO DISTRICT PLAYOFFS
The
PAGE A9
Blue Mountain
EAGLE
Grant County’s newspaper since 1868
W edNesday , M ay 9, 2018
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www.MyEagleNews.com
CYBERBULLYING
SEXTING
Teens may encounter sex crimes, bullying
on smartphones in the 21st century
By Richard Hanners
Blue Mountain Eagle
S
Contributed photo
Keizer Police Sgt. Trevor
Wenning presented a
talk on children and
social media at Grant
Union Junior-Senior High
School on April 23.
“
martphones and social media
have become a way of life in the
21st century — about 6.7 tril-
lion text messages were sent in
2014. The dark side of all that
interaction includes sex crimes, bullying
and mental health issues.
Many teenagers know when they’re
behaving inappropriately online, but they
don’t know what they’re doing could be a
crime. And while parents might understand
the consequences of such behavior, they
often don’t understand the technology and
provide no oversight over their children’s
online communication.
That was the message Sgt. Trevor Wen-
ning presented to about 40 parents at Grant
Union Junior-Senior High School April 23.
Wenning was invited here by Todd McKin-
ley and Cindy Tirico from the county pro-
bation department. Wenning has been with
the Keizer Police Department since 1998
and supervises a school resource unit in a
large school district.
Pervasive culture
The subject is both sensitive and com-
plex, involving numerous state laws and
constantly changing technology. Poten-
tial crimes include sextortion, where boys
might use nude photos to threaten girls for
more photos. Cyberbullying can go on for
years because nude photos are never com-
pletely deleted, he said, and suicidal ide-
ation often results from cyberbullying.
About 89 percent of U.S. teenagers
have a smartphone, and about 93 percent of
them report going online every day. Nearly
half of U.S. teenagers reported their social
life would end or be worsened without a
smartphone — especially the latest ver-
sion. Many reported their smartphone was
second only to clothing for telling the most
about their social status, Wenning said.
“Smartphones are a good tool for us,
but we need to monitor them,” he said.
Nearly a quarter of teenagers reported
going online constantly, averaging about
52 hours per week during working hours.
The average smartphone user picked up
the device nearly 1,500 times per week for
about three hours a day, Wenning said.
See TEENS, Page A18
There is no such thing as innocent sexting. Nearly all cases of sexting are felonies.”
Sgt. Trevor Wenning, Keizer police officer
Initiative would prohibit enforcement
of laws restricting gun possession
Blue Mountain Eagle
A prospective initiative petition in
Grant County seeks to expand the con-
stitutional definition of firearms and
prohibit the enforcement of laws that
regulate their manufacture, sale and pos-
session.
Grant County Clerk Brenda Percy re-
ceived the ballot title for the prospective
initiative and determined it complied
with constitutional requirements. Elec-
tors dissatisfied with the determination
may file a petition for review by 5 p.m.
May 14 in Grant County Circuit Court.
A summary of the prospective ini-
tiative states it would mandate that Or-
egon and United States constitutional
definitions of firearms be interpreted to
include ammunition and firearms acces-
sories in Grant County.
“Approval of this measure would
See GUNS, Page A18
Wyden holds town hall in Prairie City
By Richard Hanners
Blue Mountain Eagle
Sen. Ron Wyden took ques-
tions from students and residents
for 90 minutes during a town
hall meeting at the Prairie City
School gym May 1. The Dem-
ocrat holds town hall meetings
in each of Oregon’s 36 counties
once a year.
“This is the way the Found-
ing Fathers wanted us to do it,”
he said.
Wyden started the meeting
by presenting agricultural sci-
ence and technology teacher
Lindy Cruise with an American
flag that had flown over the U.S.
Capitol in honor of her work at
the school. Last year, the school
received a $336,286 career read-
iness grant from the state, thanks
to Cruise’s efforts.
Questions asked at the town
hall meeting ranged from divi-
The Eagle/Richard Hanners
Sen. Ron Wyden, left, exchanges photos following a town
hall meeting in the Prairie City School gym May 1. With
him are, from left, Grant County commissioner candidate
Gordon Larson, Commissioner Boyd Britton, County
Judge Scott Myers, John Day police officer Mike Durr and
commissioner candidate Tanner Elliott.
siveness and extremism to abor-
tion, guns, climate change and
infrastructure. Divisiveness is a
problem, he said, but media have
not been reporting progress that’s
being made in Washington.
Wyden emphasized the
need for bipartisanship in
Congress, and he pointed to
legislation he and Republican
See WYDEN, Page A18
FastHealth online
hospital forms may
have been compromised
By Sean Hart
Blue Mountain Eagle
Some information submitted in online forms on Blue
Mountain Hospital District’s website may have been com-
promised, but no patient information could have been ac-
cessed.
FastHealth, a vendor that provides web-
site hosting and design for the hospital, sent
notices to local people who may have been
affected April 23. One letter signed by CEO
Kevin Foote said the person’s name and So-
cial Security number was on a database that
was accessed by an unauthorized third party
Derek Daly
in August 2017. Foote did not respond to a
message from the Eagle.
Blue Mountain Hospital District CEO Derek Daly said
FastHealth recently informed the district that the data that was
potentially accessed were online job applications.
“No patient information is managed by FastHealth,” Daly
said. “No data was compromised from BMHD.”
Daly said FastHealth cannot confirm the number of applica-
tions that were compromised, so the company is sending notices
to anyone who may have potentially been affected. The district
is still contracting with FastHealth, he said.
“FastHealth has taken an aggressive stance by implement-
ing new encryption solutions, data protection and security pro-
tocols,” Daly said. “Following FastHealth’s notification ... we
made sure that our employees were aware of FastHealth’s data
breach and provided education surrounding data breaches.”
Foote said in the letter the company has no indication any
of the personal information has been misused. The company
offered to provide one year of free credit monitoring, fraud
consultation and identity theft restoration.
“We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience or concern
this incident may cause you,” Foote said in the letter.
Daly encouraged anyone who received a letter from Fast-
Health to follow all of the instructions or contact the company
at 1-833-215-3730.