Wednesday night at 7 p.m., New Jersey 101.5 FM and NJ1015.com presented a special, live town hall on the dangers children face online.

As we aired video of the on-air program at Facebook.com/NJ1015 Wednesday, we invited audience members to ask a State Police expert and a survivor of a childhood abduction questions on cyber safety in real-time. See the Facebook Live event below to follow the conversation.

"Sadly, the holidays are an opportune time for cyber child predators," station brand manager Anne Gress said. "Our award-winning news department has assembled timely and important strategies to protect kids whether on social media sites, online apps, or video game platforms. Keeping children safe is a top priority of New Jersey 101.5, and this information is must-hear (and must-see on Facebook Live) before buying kids any digital holiday gifts.”

The program’s on-air guest panel included New Jersey State Police Lt. John Pizzuro, commander of the NJSP’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force; Monmouth County prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni; and Dr. Steven Tobias, director of the Center for Child & Family Development in Morristown.

All week, we're exploring online safety in a series of articles leading up to the town hall.  We'll explore not just where danger lurks — and you might be surprised where it does — but what you, as a parent, can do to keep your child safe.

Joining us on air were:

Lt. John Pizzuro is commander of the New Jersey State Police Internet Crimes Against Children task force. As mentioned in previous New Jersey 101.5 town halls and this week's series of special reports by David Matthau, Pizzuro and his team have identified dopamine dependence on smart devices in children and teenagers -- the feeling of getting a rush from going online -- as a major reason why threats from cyber predators are on the rise.

Christopher J. Gramiccioni has served as Monmouth County Prosecutor since 2012, first on an acting basis, then being officially sworn in in 2015. His prosecutorial work in the field of child sexual abuse dates back 20 years, first as a United States Navy Officer based in San Diego (he is currently commissioned as a Commander) and then during an eight-and-a-half year tenure as Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey.

Dr. Steven Tobias is the Director of the Center for Child and Family Development in Morristown, New Jersey. He has over 25 years' experience working with children, parents, families, and schools, is a frequent contributor to New Jersey 101.5 news stories, and has given lectures throughout the country on topics related to children's emotional development and parenting.

Alicia Kozakiewicz, who can be found on multiple social media platforms as @ItsAliciaKozak, is a native of Pittsburgh. It was there, on New Year's Day 2002, that she became, at the age of 13, the first widely reported Internet-related child abduction victim. Now an internationally acclaimed and highly sought-after motivational speaker, Internet safety expert, author, actress, and founder of The Alicia Project, for the past 17 years she has pioneered insightful Internet safety and sexual exploitation awareness presentations to children and adults.

From our 2017 program on online dangers:

https://www.facebook.com/events/1853677751579659/

More From New Jersey 101.5 FM