Karina Salinas is just one of millions of 13 year olds who have used the social networking site, Kik.
With its limited parental controls is why her friends joined.
But what makes this different than other apps, is how easily it is for strangers to chat with your kids. Carina says people she has never met could search for her or send a message.
Law enforcement says it’s quickly attracting child predators. In fact, one convicted pedophile in New Jersey called it "well known in our industry" another in Michigan said "I can get anybody I want." In Virginia, a man was arrested in Fairfax this week trying to solicit underage sex. Another man in Virginia Beach was just sentenced to 20 years last month for targeting young girls.
Experts say there is no filter in the app to prevent it.
Patrick Siewart is a forensic digital expert. He says the Kik app is even a challenge for law enforcement. Since the site is based in Canada, investigations take longer
“If you try to send a subpoena to Canada, they are not going to honor it, so what law enforcement has to do is contact the Canadian authorities,” says Siewart.
Kik did not respond to our request for comment, but they do offer points of contact for law enforcement on their site. But for Carina's mom Yenny, she's had enough. She says she started deleting apps that she did not recognize.
